Oklahoma Gov. signs bill to protect women's spaces, accompanied by Riley Gaines
‘Today we are taking a stand against this out-of-control gender ideology that is eroding the very foundation of our society,’ Stitt said at the signing.
‘It's just common sense that we have to do this to define what a woman is and protect women.’
Gov. Kevin Stitt (R-OK) signed the “Women’s Bill of Rights” into law Tuesday, accompanied by former collegiate swimmer and women’s sports advocate Riley Gaines.
“Today we are taking a stand against this out-of-control gender ideology that is eroding the very foundation of our society,” Stitt said at the signing.
The “Women’s Bill of Rights,” or Senate Bill 408, uses biology as the only basis to define gender as a means to protect “women-only” spaces including rape crisis centers, domestic violence shelters, locker rooms, restrooms, prisons, and sororities, among others. It brings “clarity, certainty, and uniformity” to both biological sexes to prevent situations in which biological women must share spaces with biological men.
”It’s even weird to say that we have to do this in today’s age,” Stitt said on Fox News’ “The Faulkner Focus,” Tuesday “… but to us, it’s just common sense that we have to do this to define what a woman is and protect women. 50 years ago, Title XI was signed. Now it feels like the left is trying to erode that.”
[RELATED: Riley Gaines: Transgender issues are about the ‘sheer essence of humanity’]
Gaines joined Stitt at the signing and on “The Faulkner Focus.” Gaines has been speaking out about her experience sharing a locker room and competing against former University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas, the first trans woman (biological man) to win women’s NCAA swimming title.
“This is so exciting,” Gaines told Faulkner. “This is a day that I’ve anticipated for really months now.”
“Of course this is protecting women and girls in Oklahoma, but it sends a message to governors across the country and to follow suit, to take action, to protect women and girls and I’m certain that more will follow the leadership of Governor Stitt in doing so,” she added.
I was proud to sign an executive order establishing a Women’s Bill of Rights here in Oklahoma. We are doing everything we can to safeguard women’s spaces.
Thank you to my friend, @Riley_Gaines_, for your presence and advocacy! @IWV pic.twitter.com/aKP61kUHaF— Governor Kevin Stitt (@GovStitt) August 1, 2023
[RELATED: ‘I stand by Riley’: The attack on Riley Gaines has Congress’ attention]
Stitt told Faulkner that he signed the bill for his three daughters, Riley Gaines, and for the young girls in Oklahoma. “It’s just absolutely wrong for them to be forced to change and undress in what should be a safe locker room as they’re competing,” he told Faulkner.
Rep. Mauree Turner of Oklahoma City and House Democratic Caucus Chair Rep. Trish Ranson fought to block the passage of the “Women’s Bill of Rights.” Turner called the law “homegrown bigotry in the place of policy,” and Ranson said that it “divides and excludes already marginalized individuals,” Faulkner reported.
