A male teenager identifying as a girl won the under-14 category for the 2023 Southern Region Oireachtas Irish dancing competition in Dallas, Texas.
One mother told The Daily Signal that the boy’s victory was “going to make [her] cry.”
“I never thought I was going to have to deal with this. And my heart breaks for my daughter and the other girls that are having to deal with this. They are too young to have to deal with topics that are going on in society, that are adult topics, that they don’t quite comprehend yet.”
The boy previously competed in his biological gender and placed 11th in the Coimisiún Le Rincí Gaelacha (CLRG) World Championships.
Another mother shared that her daughter, who competed against the trans-identifying boy, did not realize her competitor was male until he won.
Pj McCafferty, the Director of the Southern Region of Irish Dance Teachers Association of North America (IDTANA), which works together with CLRG, said in a statement, “I am aware that there is a great deal of upset in the Southern Region about the CLRG and IDTANA policies that transgender Irish Dancers enter competitions that align with the gender identity of their everyday public life; their academic, workplace, social, and home life. I have had conversations and exchanged emails with teachers and parents about the CLRG and IDTANA policies.”
“Entering and competing in the CLRG World Championship competition that corresponds to the gender identity of the dancer is an established CLRG precedent, it has been done before. A dancer must qualify for the specific World Championship competition in which they will dance. CLRG controls Oireachtas Rince na Cruinne and the process of qualifying to compete for the CLRG World Championship,” McCafferty explained. “The Southern Region is obligated to follow CLRG policy. Similarly, entering in the Regional Qualifier competition that corresponds to the gender identity of a dancer is an established precedent for IDTANA competitions, it has been done before including in the IDTANA-Southern Region Oireachtas.”
“I am writing this post to remind everyone that we teach all the dancers. We advocate for every one of our dancers. We do our very best to be fair to everyone. This situation is not easy for anyone. Not everyone’s point of view or personal interests align. I am asking for your tolerance. You are expected to respect all the dancers.”
