A private Christian school which forfeited a girls’ basketball game because the opposing team had a transgender athlete just won a six-figure settlement.
The event occurred in 2023, when Mid Vermont Christian School (MVCS) voluntarily forfeited a postseason match in protest of their transgender opposition. "We were all in agreement that the right decision was to not compromise our beliefs and to withdraw, but the conversation with the players was the hardest," explains basketball coach Chris Goodwin. “There were some teary eyes, and some sad faces, but in the end, they all really did understand that it was the right thing to do."
The state barred the school from participating in state athletics for two years in response.
Now, the school just won a settlement totaling more than half a million dollars – restitution, they say, for blatant religious discrimination.
“Biblical Truth” or Bigotry?
Mid Vermont Christian School enlisted Alliance Defending Freedom, a mainstay of religious freedom lawsuits in recent years, to represent them. Senior counsel David Cortman argued that the state of Vermont “denied Mid Vermont Christian School a public benefit available to all other schools in Vermont just because it stood by the widely held, biblical belief that boys and girls are different.”
“At Mid Vermont Christian School, we strive to exemplify biblical truth in and through everything we do,” said Coach Goodwin. “As a coach, I always want my team to play in fair and safe competitions. As a dad, I want my daughter to know that she should always stand up for her beliefs and should never be punished for that decision.”
The Vermont Principals’ Association, which governs state athletics, barred Mid Vermont Christian not only from athletic competitions for two years, but also their academic teams, including mathletes and spelling bee and science competition hopefuls. Because of this blanket ban, athletes and academics alike had to travel out of state to compete in competitions, imposing a significant travel burden for coaches and students alike.
"The travel is probably triple," Goodwin said. "You’re getting back at 10 o’clock at night… kids trying to do homework. I don't want to say there's a nightmare, but it was difficult."
Coach Goodwin says those are years they can’t get back.
"That’s a big part of the culture… having games in your gym, where parents and community members come," he lamented. "That just disappeared."
The Right Side of History?
Coaches and students at MVCS say they shouldn’t have to sacrifice their religious convictions just to participate in state athletics. But the Vermont Principals’ Association says their rules were in alignment with Vermont law, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender identity.
They say that all students have the right to participate in athletics, and that students – including LGBTQ+ students – have the right to participate in state athletics without fear of harassment.
The Vermont Principals’ Association denies any wrongdoing, and says they’re settling “based primarily on the costs and burdens imposed by ongoing litigation,” the group said in a statement.
It’s clear that both sides believe they’re in the right – not only legally, but morally. The state even reportedly argued in court that MVCS’s refusal to play against transgender athletes would be looked down on by future generations, alleging that they are on the wrong side of history. But the school’s attorney says that couldn’t be further from the truth. "The school is on the right side of history and will be for following his faith in its beliefs,” he stated. “You're always on the right side of history when you stand up for truth."
What is your response? Who’s on the right side of history here, in your opinion?
Where in the Bible are transgender people mentioned?