CAP Report Calls for Nuanced Approach to Transgender Sports Participation

The authors frame the guidance as a political “reset” intended to “turn down the temperature” of Republican attacks on transgender health care, sports, and military service.

The Advocate

Recent polling shows a sharp split in public attitudes. A Gallup survey conducted in May 2025 found that 69 % of U.S. adults favor requiring transgender athletes to compete according to sex assigned at birth, versus 24 % who support participation based on gender identity. Pew Research Center’s February 2025 survey reported similar figures—66 % favoring birth-sex-based rules—while 56 % endorsed broader anti-discrimination protections for transgender people in employment, housing and public accommodations. CAP’s authors argue that these divergent views create a “defensive environment” for LGBTQ+ advocates.

The Advocate

The report advises that eligibility rules be set by schools, community leagues, and athletic governing bodies rather than elected officials. It cites the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association, which allows participation based on gender identity, and contrasts this with the NCAA’s post-Trump policy that bars transgender women from women’s teams.

The Advocate

Civil-rights attorney Alejandra Caraballo, a trans Harvard Law School instructor, contends that CAP’s reliance on the NCAA example “legitimizes a Trump-directed action” and risks violating state nondiscrimination statutes. She argues the report is “legally incoherent” for supporting broad anti-discrimination laws while appearing to endorse exclusionary sports policies.

The Advocate

• “We’re not necessarily speaking directly to their policy because we’re making the point that politics should not be part of the process,” — Caleb Smith

The Advocate

• “I really get folks wanting us to all get this right,” — Caleb Smith

The Advocate