Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman’s executive order on transgender athletes is an unwarranted instrusion into private activities. The physical qualifications for athletes is a matter that should properly be determined by sports teams and leagues, not the government.

Many sports have physical qualifications. Boxing and wrestling classify athletes by weight. Little Leagues and senior teams have age qualifications. A  female Kenyan runner with naturally high testosterone levels has been required to use testosterone lowering drugs for certain track events. What constitutes fair competition can be a difficult issue.

The difficulty of deciding what is fair competition is a good reason for the government to keep out. People should be allowed to make the own choices rather than having the government impose choices upon them. Some leagues may bar trans athletes while others welcome them. Those who don’t like these choices may start their own teams and leagues that reflect their own desires or try to change the minds of those who disagree with them. That is the way a free society operates.

Instead, Bruce Blakeman has decided to impose his choices on others by using his control over county athletic facilities.

Ryan Cooper

Albertson