Riley Gaines calls out California public library for silencing pro-woman student athlete
'This is ridiculous, but not shocking,' wrote Riley Gaines in a response the following day. 'A female athlete silenced for calling a spade a spade.'
The video footage, panning across the room, showed many people holding LGBTQ+ flags. The hecklers stood at the edges of the room.
At the Mary L. Stephens Davis Branch Library in Davis, California, Sophia Lorey was invited to speak on biological men in women’s sports but was received with heavy heckling and shouts for her to be shut down. The California Family Council posted a video on August 20 recording the incident.
“This is ridiculous, but not shocking,” wrote Riley Gaines in a response the following day. “A female athlete silenced for calling a spade a spade.”
This is ridiculous, but not shocking....a female athlete silenced for calling a spade a spade. They won’t even engage in a civil conversation. Props to this gal for sticking her ground.
Do we know the librarians name and/or phone number? We need silent majority to do its thing https://t.co/EzlqGDbTZo— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) August 21, 2023
“Current 10-year-old girls cannot live out the same dream [I had] as long as men are allowed to compete in women’s sports,” Lorey said during the event. She barely squeaked out the first half of her next sentence before a librarian instructed her to leave.
Lorey continued, using “biological girls” and “biological men” instead, but the librarian persisted and insisted that she leave or else he would shut the meeting down.
“Why am I being asked to leave?” Lorey said.
“Because you are misgendering,” the librarian said. “You were talking about men in women’s sports.”
The video footage, panning across the room, showed many people holding LGBTQ+ flags. The hecklers stood at the edges of the room. “Notice it’s men shouting [Lorey] down and silencing her,” Gaines wrote. “Isn’t this way the original feminist movement fought against? So much for #MeToo.”
Notice it’s men shouting her down and silencing her. Isn’t this way the original feminist movement fought against? So much for #MeToo #SaveWomensSports https://t.co/EzlqGDbTZo
— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) August 21, 2023
“It’s a pretty Marxist ideology to threaten our first amendment [sic] rights, but we’re seeing it time and time again,” Gaines said on Fox News’ Hannity.
[RELATED: Sign at UChicago lets women know men will be using their restroom: report]
In response, Gaines posted the library’s phone number with instructions to dial the operator and leave a complaint. Gaines also published the library’s Google profile where a review can be left.
“The library is Mary L. Stephens Davis branch library located in Davis, California,” she wrote. “Everyone call!!!!”
Campus Reform noticed several one-star Yelp reviews for the library on Aug. 21. The rating is now 2.5 stars. Yelp has since blocked any further ratings.
“This business recently received increased public attention in the news, which often means people come to this page to post their views on the news rather than a first-hand consumer experience,” the notice reads. “As a result, we’ve temporarily disabled the ability to post content about this business.”
Campus Reform previously reported that The Riley Gaines Center at the Leadership Institute launched recently to help support women like Lorey and spread their stories. The Leadership Institute is the parent organization of Campus Reform.
