Minn. Court of Appeals Sends Trans Discrimination Case Back to District Court

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On Monday the Minnesota Court of Appeals affirmed that discrimination against transgender people is against the law. It then sent Cooper vs. USA Powerlifting back to the district court so it could clarify why transgender woman JayCee Cooper was not allowed to compete.

"USA Powerlifting did not exclude JayCee Cooper because of her gender identity," the organization's lead attorney Ansis V. Viksnins told Fox News Digital in a statement. "USA Powerlifting excluded her from competing in the women’s division because of her physiology: she enjoys strength advantages over other women because she went through puberty as a man."

The APA defines a transgender person as: "Transgender is an umbrella term for persons whose gender identity, gender expression or behavior does not conform to that typically associated with the sex to which they were assigned at birth. Gender identity refers to a person’s internal sense of being male, female or something else; gender expression refers to the way a person communicates gender identity to others through behavior, clothing, hairstyles, voice or body characteristics."

The above video is from Feb 3, 2021 before USA Powerlifting appealed the district court ruling.

Gender Justice, the orgainization that represents JayCee Cooper said in a statement, "Today the Minnesota Court of Appeals affirmed that discrimination against athletes based on gender identity violates the Minnesota Human Rights Act, but sent the case of a transgender woman who was denied entry into USA Powerlifting (USAPL) competitions back to a district court to determine whether USAPL rejected her because she is transgender."

“The Court of Appeals affirmed that it is illegal to discriminate against transgender people in sports, but sent the case back down for trial to determine whether that is what happened here,” said Jess Braverman, legal director for Gender Justice. “We believe that it is crystal clear that JayCee Cooper experienced exactly this kind of discrimination, and we are confident that the courts will ultimately agree.

“We remain committed to vindicating Ms. Cooper’s rights and advocating for a future where everyone, regardless of gender identity, has equal access to a full range of opportunities in sports and every life pursuit. Our fight continues for fairness, equality, and the basic human rights of transgender people in Minnesota and beyond.”

Attorneys on the case are Jess Braverman, Christy Hall, and Sara Jane Baldwin of Gender Justice, David Schlesinger and Riley Palmer of Nichols Kaster, and Matt Frank of Premo Frank.