A New Hampshire parent is speaking out after he says he was banned from school grounds for wearing pink “XX” armbands in support of women’s sports at his daughter’s soccer game this week when a biological male was reportedly playing on the opposing team.
Anthony Foote of Bow, New Hampshire, told the New Hampshire Journal he received a notice of trespass from Bow and Dunbarton School Districts Superintendent Marcy Kelley after he wore armbands in support of girls-only sports to his daughter’s high school soccer game Tuesday.
“My daughter’s playing in the homecoming game this weekend, and I’m banned until the 23rd,” Foote told the publication. “I can’t watch her play in homecoming, which is ridiculous.”
The issue began when several parents complained to Bow High School Athletic Director Mike Desilets after they learned a player from Plymouth Regional High School was a biological male playing for the girls varsity team.
According to the report, some parents arrived at Tuesday’s game wearing the armbands, but the game was stopped and school officials demanded the armbands be removed. The report states Foote and at least one other parent were issued “police-enforced ‘no trespassing’ orders.”
A copy of the notice obtained by the New Hampshire Journal accused Foote of leading a protest that “was designed to and had the effect of intimidating, threatening, harassing, and discouraging” the student on the opposing team.
“Specifically, prior to and during the soccer game you brought and distributed pink armbands to parents and other attendees to protest the participation of a transgender female student on the other team,” the notice states. It adds that the armbands violate school policy.
