Catholic school girls’ soccer team boycotts game against school with transgender goalie

A Catholic school’s girls’ soccer team has boycotted a game against a school with a transgender goalie who was allowed to play despite restrictions under state law.

Varsity athletes at Bishop Brady High School in Concord, New Hampshire, refused to show up for their scheduled game against Kearsarge Regional High School in North Sutton on Friday, according to multiple reports.

The Bishop Brady girls believed Kearsarge was at an advantage because their goalie Maëlle Jacques was biologically male and “boycotted” the game in an effort to “say no to unfair competition,” the county’s Moms for Liberty group shared of Hillsborough on social media. media

Jacques, 16, was kicked off the team earlier this year after the Kearsarge school board voted to enforce the district with a new state law barring transgender students from competing in girls’ sports.

But the school board in August decided he could join the team after filing a direct appeal, citing a lawsuit claiming New Hampshire’s sports ban violates federal Title IX measures. A federal court also issued an injunction last month blocking enforcement of the ban.

Kearsarge is one of two schools in the state with a player who is a biological male competing in girls’ sports.

Varsity athletes from Bishop Brady High School in Concord, New Hampshire (pictured) refused to show up for their scheduled game against Kearsarge Regional High School in North Sutton on Friday.

The Bishop Brady girls reportedly believed Kearsarge was at an advantage because their goalie Maëlle Jacques (pictured) was biologically male and “boycotted” the game in an effort to “say no to unfair competition.”

The Bishop Brady Giants were scheduled to play the Kearsarge Cougars on Friday, but instead opted to forfeit the game.

Their act of protest drew praise from former competitive swimmer Riley Gaines, who was among 16 female athletes who filed a lawsuit against the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) after competing against transgender swimmer Lia Thomas.

Gaines, an activist who fights for fair competition in women’s sports, praised the Giants’ protest in a tweet, saying, “The NH Bishop Brady High School girls soccer team loses and accepts defeat against the opposing team whose star player is a man.

‘They are the second team in the district to do so. This is the way. #BOYCOTT.’

However, the team did not receive the same level of support from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester, which supports Bishop Brady.

When Bishop Peter Libasci learned that parents and students may take action against Kearsarge players, he and his legal team drafted a statement opposing the boycott, The NH Journal reported.

Dave Thibault, superintendent of schools for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester, also urged the girls to play before the game, apparently citing “Christian charity.”

“We don’t think it’s right to forfeit a game when we play a team with a transgender athlete because we have an issue that isn’t being handled properly by another party,” Thibault said in a statement obtained by the newspaper.

But eventually, the competition was canceled because several students refused to play.

Jacques, 16, (pictured addressing a New Hampshire state hearing in April 2024) was kicked off the team earlier this year after the Kearsarge school board voted to enforcing the district’s new state law that barred transgender students from competing in girls’ sports. . But the school board in August decided he could join the team after filing a direct appeal, citing a lawsuit claiming New Hampshire’s sports ban violates federal Title IX measures.

The Bishop Brady team’s act of protest also received praise from former competitive swimmer Riley Gaines, who applauded them for accepting a “loss against an opposing team whose star player is a man.”

Diocese communications director Tara Bishop reportedly tried to play down the boycott, telling the NH Journal, “There just weren’t enough players available for this game.”

Bishop Brady’s parents, in addition to concerns about Jacques being a biological male, have also expressed concern about his father’s presence at the games.

Marc Jacques is a registered sex offender after being convicted last month of federal charges of distributing child sexual abuse material.

According to court records, he was found in possession of at least 200 images and videos of child sexual abuse, many of which he uploaded to a social media platform.

Marc Jacques was also arrested on Friday for an alleged bail violation and is due in court today for a bail revocation hearing.

Bishop Brady’s boycott comes just two months after a federal judge in New Hampshire ruled that two transgender students could ignore a state law barring them from competing in girls’ and girls’ sports at their public high schools.

U.S. District Court Chief Judge Landya McCafferty in August allowed Parker Tirrell, 15, and Iris Turmelle, 14, who use the pronouns she and her, to participate in girls’ sports after that their families filed a lawsuit to overturn the “Women’s Sports Equity Act.” ‘ (HB 1205).

Republican Gov. Chris Sununu signed the new law in July, which requires students to play on sports teams that align with the gender listed on their birth certificate.

When he signed the bill into law, Sununu said it “ensures fairness and safety in women’s sports by maintaining integrity and competitive balance in athletic competitions.”

U.S. District Court Chief Judge Landya McCafferty in August allowed 15-year-old Parker Tirrell (pictured) and 14-year-old Iris Turmelle, who use the pronouns she and her, participate in women’s sports after their families filed a lawsuit to overturn HB 1205, also known as the “Women’s Sports Equity Act”

The Tirrell and Turmelle families in their lawsuit alleged that the bill “denies (the couple) equal educational opportunity and discriminates against them for discrimination solely because they are transgender girls.” In the photo: Iris Turmelle

But the Tirrell and Turmelle families in their lawsuit alleged that the bill “denies (the couple) equal educational opportunity and discriminates against them simply because they are transgender girls.”

It also argued that the ban violated federal law and constitutional guarantees of equal protection, as well as negating the educational, social, and physical and mental health benefits associated with playing sports. The lawsuit also claimed the ban isolates transgender players from friends and teammates.

Last month, a federal court blocked implementation of HB 1205, ruling that the legislation discriminates against transgender students in violation of Title IX and the US Constitution.

The judge ruled that the bill “on its face, discriminates against transgender girls”, adding that “it’s not even a close call”.

The judgment also stated that “the stigma and humiliation that derives from this treatment of a child by the State is substantial and irreparable.”