At Kim Reynolds' event, Riley Gaines says transgender identities are 'spiritual warfare'

At Gov. Kim Reynolds' annual fundraiser, former competitive swimmer and anti-transgender activist Riley Gaines said the participation of transgender women in sports — and the recognition of transgender identities in general — is "spiritual warfare."

“As a Christian myself, I entirely see this as spiritual warfare," said Gaines, who was invited as a special guest speaker. "It’s no longer about right versus wrong or good versus bad. This really is about moral versus evil.”

As kids decorated pumpkins and about 500 Republicans nibbled on the remains of their barbecue dinners, Gaines recounted her experience competing against Lia Thomas, a transgender swimmer from the University of Pennsylvania.

Gaines and Thomas tied for fifth place in the 200-yard freestyle at the 2022 NCAA Swim Championships. Gaines said NCAA officials insisted that Thomas hold the singular 5th place trophy in photographs.

"I asked the question that no one dared ask all season. … I said, 'Why? Why are you adamant on giving this trophy to a man in women's swimming freestyle?'" Gaines said.

Gaines said Thomas was also permitted to change in the women's locker room, which made her and other teammates feel uncomfortable.

Beyond just athletic accommodations, Gaines argued against the existence of transgender individuals in a Christian worldview. She referred to Thomas as a man repeatedly throughout her speech.

"There is just man and woman, and God created them," Gaines said. The audience cheered and whooped.

Major American medical groups recognize transgender identities and recommend gender-affirming care for transgender individuals.

As Reynolds introduced Gaines, she celebrated Iowa's 2022 law that banned transgender women and girls from competing in female sports offered by Iowa schools, colleges and universities.

"After years of sacrifice and work, she was forced to compete against a biological man in the NCAA championship. … That should never happen again," Reynolds said. "And in Iowa, it never will."

Keenan Crow, lobbyist for LGBTQ advocacy group One Iowa, said in a Saturday statement that Reynolds' "victory lap" on the transgender sports ban is "once again taking the opportunity to punch down on a marginalized group of young people."

"Her ongoing cruelty to transgender Iowans may not bother her donors, but there are real human impacts on real children from this kind of hate and exclusion," Crow said.

Although Republican legislative leaders said they didn't have any more transgender issues on their agenda after the transgender sports ban, the Legislature returned in 2023 and passed several more laws impacting transgender kids.

Now, Iowa prohibits doctors from providing gender-affirming medical care to transgender minors; forbids transgender individuals from using school restrooms or changing rooms that align with their gender identity; requires parental notification if a student requests to use a new name or pronouns in school; and bars any instruction about sexual orientation or gender identity before seventh grade.

"We need to just pause, we need to understand what these emerging therapies actually may potentially do to our kids," Reynolds told reporters the day before she signed the ban on gender-affirming care for minors. "My heart goes out to them. I’m a parent, I’m a grandmother, I know how difficult this is. This is an extremely uncomfortable position for me to be in. I don’t like it. But I have to do what I believe right now is in the best interest of the kids."

Medical groups recommend providing transgender youth with medical care that helps them live as the gender they identify with.

Some Iowa families sought gender-affirming care out of state as the ban became law last month.

Katie Akin is a politics reporter for the Register. Reach her atkakin@registermedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at @katie_akin.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Riley Gaines says transgender identities are 'spiritual warfare'