A toxic wave of sexism, racial stereotypes and transphobic hate was unleashed after Algerian boxer Imane Khelif beat her opponent Angela Carini in just 46 seconds in the Paris Olympics.
False accusations that Khelif was a “biological male” began to circulate, alongside a disgusting cartoon of a “beast” squaring off with a “beauty” under the Olympic symbol.
The media let falsehood fester. Carini was quoted repeatedly saying, “I’ve never been hit so hard in my life.”
Imane Khelif is not trans, was born a woman and has always competed in women’s sports. But this attack on her right to participate, because she does not fit into a rigid gender stereotype, has become a rallying point for the transphobic right.
Khelif, along with Taiwanese boxer Lin Yu-ting, was disqualified from the 2023 World Boxing championship for failing an International Boxing Association (IBA) gender eligibility test.
The International Olympic Committee has criticised the tests as rushed and lacking any oversight or clear procedures. The IBA no longer oversees Olympic boxing after it lost its status as the sport’s world governing body due to corruption.
But the idea that you can test biologically for gender is absurd. Gender is a social construct. Nor is there a reliable test sex, as the idea that sex differences are consistent, binary and profound is also a myth. This is why sports associations have not been able to settle on a single sex test—chromosomes, testosterone levels, visual inspections, or identity documents have each been the benchmark at different times.
The details of the test have been kept confidential, but the IBA says it was based on analysing chromosomes. It is possible for women to have XY chromosomes and exhibit stereotypically female characteristics due to having intersex traits or Differences in Sexual Development (DSD).
Powerful female athletes, very often women of colour, have frequently been accused of using performance enhancing drugs, or being men, when they excel at sports—including tennis star Serena Williams, WNBA star Brittney Griner and South African runner Caster Semenya.
At the root of transphobia lies old school misogyny, and an obsession with policing gender.
The nationalism, competition and artificial gender divisions enforced by elite sports set the scene for the regular dehumanisation of athletes like Khelif. They deserve our solidarity.
Attacking trans people has become a common tactic for the right. We must fight back. This toxic moment in the gender wars starkly reveals that we all have a stake in pushing back against sexist and transphobic attitudes, which seek to enforce the narrow straitjacket of gender norms on all of us, no matter the cost.
By Erima Dall
