A look at how students around the country celebrated 'Real Women's Day'
Speakers included conservative activists such as Paula Scanlan and Olivia Krolczyk, as well as Riley Gaines herself.
After swimmer Riley Gaines declared October 10 to be Real Women’s Day, several student groups celebrated.
Riley Gaines designated October 10, or 10/10, as Real Women’s Day due to the Roman numerals for the date being X/X, referencing women having XX sex chromosomes. Michigan Congresswoman Lisa McClain also introduced a resolution to make the day official.
“Real Women’s Day should be recognized, not only to celebrate womanhood, but to serve as a crucial reminder to keep women’s spaces available only to real women,” reads the description for the event on the Leadership Institute’s Riley Gaines Center’s website. “Real Women’s Day celebrates the unique and special role that women play in society.”
Students at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign celebrated the event, hosting conservative activist Paula Scanlan as a speaker through Turning Point USA. Scanlan has been vocal about her experiences swimming on the team with trans-identified athlete William “Lia” Thomas.
Tomorrow I will be at the University of Illinois talking about my experiences, celebrating Real Women’s Day and giving advice to college students.
Thank you to my dear friend @Riley_Gaines_ and Leadership Institute for their work to help get me onto college campuses!
I hope… pic.twitter.com/LlZ3QqVp5J— Paula Scanlan (@PaulaYScanlan) October 9, 2023
Florida State University students also celebrated the event, with the school’s Turning Point USA chapter inviting conservative activist Olivia Krolczyk. From an X post by Krolczyk about the event, it can be seen that students held signs reading messages such as “Real Women Stand With Riley,” “There are Only Two Sexes,” and “Women’s Sports are not a Retirement Plan for Failed Male Athletes.”
Thank you FSU Turning Point for inviting me to celebrate Real Women’s Day
And thank you to Riley for creating this wonderful day to celebrate those with XX chromosomes😎 @realOwenGirard @TPUSA @Riley_Gaines_ @LeadershipInst pic.twitter.com/ULeBKUx0ie— Olivia Krolczyk (@oliviakrolczyk_) October 11, 2023
Students at Pennsylvania State University also celebrated the event, with Riley Gaines herself as the speaker. However, the event was not without complications. The school repeatedly attempted to cancel and complicate the event, as Campus Reform reported.
The university alleged that it canceled the event due to a failure of the school’s Turning Point USA chapter to submit a reservation on time. However, Gaines stated that this missed deadline was due to the university stalling. The Leadership Institute’s Riley Gaines Center ended up paying to rent a space for the event.
Campus Reform reported that, during the event itself, police detained two trans activists. One of them, a masked male, called a bystander “an anti-trans piece of sh*t,” and told him “I hope you die.” The other, a masked female, flipped a table and called a bystander “transphobic.”
Campus Reform has reached out to all individuals and institutions mentioned for comment and will update the article accordingly.
Leadership Institute is the parent organization of Campus Reform.
