A group of self-described girl dads fighting to ban trans children from playing on sports teams that align with their genders held a drive-through signing event in an attempt to obtain enough signatures for a ballot measure on the issue.Maine Girl Dads is an anti-trans coalition of more than 8,000 dads (according to its website) who claim they want to protect the dignity, opportunity, and privacy of our daughters by discriminating against trans kids. Related Trans fencer feels betrayed by former training partners anti-trans lawsuit against USA Fencing Simply put, we want districts across Maine to re-institute sex-based policies in school & sport, their website states, proceeding to misgender trans people. No more males in female spaces nor sports.They claim their stance is purely paternal, not remotely political, and based in common sense. Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today The groups Protect Girls Sports in Maine campaign is advocating for a ballot measure titled, An Act to Designate School Sports Participation and Facilities by Sex. It would mandate that school sports teams, locker rooms, and bathrooms be designated as male, female, or co-ed, and require students to use facilities and join teams based on their sex assigned at birth.Supporters claim that the initiative does not violate the Maine Human Rights Act because it would align state policy with the current presidential administrations interpretation of Title IX. This will harmonize the Maine Human Rights Act with Federal Title IX, resulting in requirements and protections for individuals with biologically-verifiable differences in sex development, the Protect Girls Sports ballot question committee said in a statement. This is important, as we will effect change across the entire state all at once, while providing a private right of action for enforcement, clarifying statutory cross-references, and ensuring severability.Ahead of the drive-through event, the group said it had already collected 60,000 signatures. Around 68,000 are needed by February to get the initiative on the ballot. The campaign is spearheaded by Leyland Streiff, who is reportedly the brother of Justin Streiff, the chief operating officer at the Charlie Kirk-founded right-wing organization Turning Point USA. But Leyland Streiff seems to have more anti-trans motivations than a concern for keeping sports fair. He also testified against a state bill to protect gender-affirming care, calling trans kids confused.He falsely claimed facts and research do not back up the need for gender-affirming care and said the state should focus on mental health resources for youth suffering from the terrible scourge of gender dysphoria. Maine Gov. Janet Mills (D) has stood strong in support of trans rights, defeating the presidents attempts to blackmail the state into rolling back protections. In February, the president signed an executive order calledKeeping Men Out of Womens Sports,which commanded federal agencies to investigate school districts that allow trans athletes to compete in school sports. The order said that the inclusion of trans female athletes in girls and womens sports violates Title IX, a provision of a 1972 education law thatprohibits sex-based discrimination in any federally funded school.In February, the president began publicly criticizing Maines trans-inclusive sports policies, pledging to revoke its federal educational funding unless it banned trans students from participating in school sports. In response, Maine Gov. Janet Mills (D) accused the president of attempting to unilaterally deprive Maine school children and pledged that her states attorney general would take all appropriate and necessary legal action to restore the federal funding.The Department of Agriculture (USDA) soon began a compliance review of the University of Maines policies on trans athletes, pledging to revoke its federal land grant.Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins then sent a letter to Mills, stating the USDA would freeze the states funding until all state schools complied with the presidents order. In April, a federal judge ordered the administration to unfreeze the funds, finding that Maine was likely to succeed in its legal challenge. A month later, the state settled with the USDA, which agreed to refrain from freezing, termination, or otherwise interfering with the state of Maines access to United States Department of Agriculture funds based on alleged violations of Title IX without first following all legally required procedures.The settlement doesnt affect another ongoing lawsuit filed by the presidential administration against Maines Department of Education for allowing trans student-athletes to compete on school teams matching their gender identities.In 2024, Mills also signed a law making Maine a sanctuary state for trans people. The law provides protections to persons who seek, health care practitioners who provide and those who assist health care practitioners in providing gender-affirming health care services and reproductive health care services that are legal in Maine.The law also protects people who seek legal healthcare and doctors who provide it in Maine from legal action originating in other states that ban or restrict such healthcare services. Doctors who provide legal healthcare services in Maine also have the right to sue for damages if they are targeted for legal action by other states.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.