How Riley Gaines became a feminist
NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines never called herself a feminist. Then she tied Lia Thomas, a transgender athlete, in the 2022 championship. That changed everything for Gaines.
NASHVILLE – Riley Gaines never considered herself a feminist growing up. Then she tied transgender swimmer Lia Thomas in last year's NCAA women's finals.
"The feminist movement has gone two directions," Gaines, who swam for the University of Kentucky, told Fox News. "One of which is upholding the original meaning of feminism, which is embracing and empowering women. The other direction has gone where they're now fighting for male inclusion in women's sports, women's spaces."
Since tying for fifth with Thomas for the 200-meter championship last year, Gaines has advocated against transgender women competing against biological females. She says her goals, like stopping proposed changes to Title IX, are intended to protect women's spaces.
As a result, Gaines, who's now a spokeswoman for the Independent Women's Forum, has become a central figure in a heated political battle. But she's also discovered a newfound appreciation of feminism.
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"I never would have called myself a feminist before this," Gaines told Fox News.
Growing up, the swimmer felt the movement aimed to divide the sexes, with radical feminists pushing the idea that women didn't need men and that they could do anything men could.
"It almost goes against the co-dependency that I believe the sexes should have," she said. "I'm married, and I rely on my husband for a lot, and he relies on me for a lot."
"That being said, I do now consider myself a feminist," she added. "But really, I've deemed it as being a modern-day feminist."
Last week, Thomas criticized female athletes who make similar comments to Gaines.
Riley Gaines said she never called herself a feminist until taking up the battle of protecting fairness in women's sports after she tied against transgender swimmer Lia Thomas at last year's NCAA championships. (Fox News Digital)
"They’re like, ‘Oh, we respect Lia, as a woman, as a trans woman or whatever, we respect her identity, we just don’t think it’s fair,’" Thomas said on the "Dear Schuyler" podcast. "You can't really have that half-support. Like, 'I respect you as a woman here, but not here.'"
"They’re using the guise of feminism to sort of push transphobic beliefs," Thomas added.
Gaines, during an interview on Fox News' "America Reports," pushed back on Thomas' claims.
"What Thomas is doing in this podcast is simply gaslighting people into feeling like they're wrong for feeling uncomfortable in the locker room, feeling like they should be okay with stepping aside and smiling and allowing these men to take our spots on the podium, take our titles, take our scholarships, take away our opportunities," she said.
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Riley Gaines, now a spokeswoman for the Independent Women’s Forum, tied Lia Thomas for fifth place in the 200 Freestyle finals at the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships last year. (Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports)
To Gaines, modern feminism means acknowledging that women deserve respect and equal opportunities while ensuring women's spaces are fair and reserved for biological females.
"We deserve to have our rights upheld, whether that be in our safety, in our sports, whether that be in our prisons, whether that be in shelters," Gaines said.
Last year, USA Swimming issued a new policy ahead of the NCAA championship that required a three-person panel of independent medical experts to determine on a case-by-case basis on whether a trans athlete had an advantage over biological female competitors. The NCAA had previously decided it would defer to a sport's governing body's regulations, but opted not to adopt the swimming rules because the decision was too close to the 2022 championship.
"Sex-protected rights are crucial," she added. "They should not be taken away by someone who wants to claim the identity of a woman, because it's not an identity you can just claim."
Last month, the Biden administration proposed new Title IX rules that would expand the meaning of sexual discrimination to include gender identity as it relates to transgender athletes participating in women's sports. Under the Department of Education's proposal, no school or college that receives federal funding could impose a one-size-fits-all policy that categorically bans transgender students from playing on sports teams consistent with their gender identity.
"The Democrats, they were once a party that did everything in their power to fight for women and their rights and their sex-based protections," Gaines told Fox News. "Now we're seeing this totally flipped. We're seeing Republicans fight for women and our sex-protected rights."
"We have a sitting Supreme Court justice who can't even define what a woman is because it's too controversial," she added. "We're seeing people within the Biden administration, the people leading this country not able to do so."
In March 2022, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson couldn't define the word "woman" during her Supreme Court confirmation hearing.
"I mean, to deny what a woman is is to deny that the sky is blue," Gaines said.
Gaines pointed to Megan Rapinoe, who is often hailed as feminist trailblazer, as being a hypocrite for advocating against a bill that would ban transgender females from girl's sports. The soccer star opposed the Protection of Girls and Women in Sports Act, which would "prohibit school athletic programs from allowing individuals whose biological sex at birth was male to participate in programs that are for women or girls."
Gaines pointed to Megan Rapinoe, who is often hailed as feminist trailblazer, as being a hypocrite for advocating against a bill that would ban transgender females from girl's sports. (Wilf Thorne/ISI Photos/Getty Images)
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The legislation passed the Republican-controlled House last week but Democrats blocked it in the Senate.
"In my grandmother's lifetime she saw the benefits of Title XI and now she's seeing that being stripped away from women," Gaines said.
"It's demeaning," she added. "It makes a mockery of what it means to compete and practice and train as a woman."
To watch the full interview with Gaines, click here.