Transgender teen quits Irish dance competition after threats from Florida Republicans

After a coordinated campaign by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, two Republican members of Congress and Concerned Women for America, a transgender teenage girl withdrew from an Irish dance competition in Orlando, The Sentinel reported.On June 24, U.S. Reps. Randy Fine and Greg Steube sent a letter to An Coimisiún Le Rincí Gaelacha, or CLRG, the Dublin-based governing body for Irish dance, and the Irish Dance Teachers’ Association of North America, or IDTANA, ahead of the North American Irish Dance Championships, which began July 2. “Biological males do not belong in girls’ dance,” Fine wrote in a social media post sharing the letter. “Florida law is clear: girls’ categories are for biological females.”Related: Florida congressmen target transgender girl competing in Irish dance championshipUthmeier also threatened legal action against the dance organizations in a June 26 letter, claiming that their policy allowing dancers to compete in divisions corresponding with their gender identity could violate Florida law. Uthmeier became involved after Maggie McKneely, a Concerned Women for America director and former competitive Irish dancer, contacted his office to complain about what she described as “a boy competing as a girl.”“Your policy of forcing women to compete against biological men who identify as women in your women’s categories deprives women of the full and equal enjoyment of fair competition,” wrote Uthmeier. “My office will not tolerate these sorts of policies, and will take all necessary steps to safeguard the rights and interests of Florida’s female competitors.”Displaying further cruelty and misgendering language toward the youth, the conservative Christian organization then gleefully posted a story after the girl's withdrawal from the competition titled "Boy Backs Out of Girls’ Irish Dance Competition."Related: Right-Wing Media Attacks Trans Girl For Winning Irish Dance CompetitionMcKneely said the group was grate