Female athlete refused to stand next to a male, so they took her medal: VIDEO
Campus Reform sat down with Oregon track & field athlete Alexa Anderson to share her story of refusing to stand next to a male athlete and her ongoing legal fight to protect her First Amendment rights.
Anderson’s protest is part of a national movement of female athletes pushing back on men in women’s sports.
At the Oregon state track and field championships, high school senior Alexa Anderson made headlines when she stepped off the podium rather than stand beside a male athlete.
Anderson, now a committed athlete at the University of South Alabama, joined Campus Reform in an interview to share why she made the bold decision to walk away.
“I didn’t find this fair, and I know that a lot of the other girls didn’t find it fair,” she said. “I had the opportunity at that moment to stand up for what I believe in, and I took it.”
[RELATED: Wagner College enters Title IX agreement over male fencer, apologizes to female athletes]
Anderson explained that this was her first public act of protest on the issue and the first time she had competed against a male.
“That whole meet, I knew that I wanted to do something; I wanted to take a stand of some sort to show that I didn’t feel this was fair,” she said.
Now, Anderson is part of a lawsuit filed against the Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA).
“Our First Amendment rights were violated in this moment. We were not allowed to speak freely and have the freedom of protest … that was taken away from us when we were ushered off to the side, and we were kind of silenced by those officials,” she said.
Anderson’s protest is part of a national movement of female athletes pushing back on men in women’s sports.
“I think this is a fight that I’m going to be a part of for the rest of my life,” Anderson told Campus Reform. “And I’m really honored to be a part of this fight with so many other strong women.”
Watch the exclusive video interview on YouTube.
Follow the author of this article on X and Instagram: @RealEmilySturge
