*REBROADCAST* Be an Ally with Megan & Saxton Tobin (Episode 40)
This week on the podcast, Shaunna and Lisa welcome two very special guests, Saxton Tobin and his mom, Megan Tobin. Saxton is an 17-year-old trangender athlete, and he and Megan speak about his experience in triathlon and what they have learned along the way.
Many of our listeners strive to be allies to underrepresented groups within their communities, and it is important that we all continue to do so. It’s also important that we act in ways that demonstrate our allyship – not just label ourselves as allies. Saxton and Megan weigh in with their best advice on how we can all be better allies to trans folks within the endurance sport community, and on how we can interrupt the “fiction narratives” that are often created around trans athletes’ participation in sport.
Our most important takeaway from this conversation with Megan and Saxton is that the best thing we can do to demonstrate our allyship is to listen. Listen to what trans folks in our triathlon communities are saying and asking for, and include them at the table when decisions are being made about their participation in sport. This will help us move toward a sporting community that values the voices and opinions of groups that have previously been excluded or oppressed in the endurance sport community.
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Transcript
So Lisa, I cannot count how many podcasts
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:we've had where we've said that we were going to invite a really
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:cool trans guest to talk about transgender concerns in
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:endurance sport, because we should not try to speak for a
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:community that we don't belong to. And so we talked way too
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:long. It's time for us to literally make this happen. So
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:we've just delayed for what almost a year now. And so we
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:finally get to bring someone on. So I'm really excited about
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:today's episode.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:Yeah, it's gonna be great. And I think it's
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:really timely given all of the anti trans bills that have been
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:passing in the United States, particularly against trans girls
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:and women and participating in girls and women's sports. So,
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:you know, advocacy around that issue is critical, I think so
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:after the break, we will introduce our two guests and we
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:will have some learning.
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:I'm Dr. Shawna Payne gold and I go by
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:she her her pronouns.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:And I'm Dr. Lisa englefield. And I go by she
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:her hers.
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:Welcome to unfazed a podcast to disrupt
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:your normal and challenge your brain to go the distance.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:All right, yay. So we have two fabulous
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:guests with us today, Megan and Saxton so they are both
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:connected to the endurance sports world and so I will hand
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:it over them to introduce themselves and tell us a little
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:bit about your background.
Saxton Tobin:Um, hi, I'm Saxton. I I'm a triathlete. I'm
Saxton Tobin:a trans triathlete. I'm 17. I'm in high school. Um, I like comic
Saxton Tobin:books. That's the only thing that can come from.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:That's great. That's great. We love it.
Megan Tobin:Hi, I'm Megan. I'm a triathlete open water swimmer
Megan Tobin:triathlon coach, and and I happen to be saxtons mom.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:Awesome. And Shaunna and I know Megan
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:through the outspoken summit, as Megan is an outspoken
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:triathletes certainly has lots of fantastic opinions. So
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:hopefully, we'll hear a few of those today.
Megan Tobin:I'm known for being outspoken and feisty, so
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:So we're good. Well, we're all about
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:soapboxes. We're all about being feisty. We're all about giving
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:voice. And so I'm just really excited to have both of you
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:here. One of the things that I really wanted to get into into
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:today's conversation is, I want to hear more about how we can be
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:allies in endurance sport community, I have a mentor of
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:mine that says all the time that, you know, we kind of throw
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:this ally word around a lot, really not knowing what it means
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:and even just kind of throwing it around with a little
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:privilege saying, Well, I'm an ally to this group, or I'm an
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:ally to that group, when in fact, I just think we should
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:call ourselves a bit more and try to demonstrate ally
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:characteristics, but I really can't deem myself and ally, I
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:just want to do the best that I can to be one. And so I want to
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:hear from you all, what can we do to be better allies, because
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:we are members of the endurance sport community, we want
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:everyone to feel included and feel this really high sense of
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:belonging. So if you had like this magic wand to wait to tell
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:us do better, y'all. What would that be?
Saxton Tobin:Oh, man, that that's a really good question.
Saxton Tobin:Oh, God, I have to say that when an athlete or when a trans
Saxton Tobin:athlete is trying to like kind of talk about something that
Saxton Tobin:they find troubling within the the endurance sport community,
Saxton Tobin:I'd say just listen to them, don't try and like talk over
Saxton Tobin:them or don't try and interrupt in any type of way. Just listen
Saxton Tobin:to them fully, and try and get an understanding of where
Saxton Tobin:they're coming from with it. And that's, that's kind of like the
Saxton Tobin:least you could do when it comes to it. Yeah.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:So bottom line, listen, um, and then what
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:about action steps, right? I know that some people are very
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:interested in taking action and wanting to do something. So
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:presumably, when someone in the sport is listening to a trans
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:athlete about their concerns, it's probably not best for that
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:person to then roll off and act without, you know, engaging with
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:athletes, right. So what kind of recommendations do you all have
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:for actually doing something about inclusion for trans
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:athletes
Saxton Tobin:talk to talk to trans athletes about what they
Saxton Tobin:think should be done and what they're comfortable with like
Saxton Tobin:doing and more or less just like if you if you're talking to a
Saxton Tobin:trans athletes And they're saying like, Oh, I don't really
Saxton Tobin:want to, like, go like, I don't want to cause a whole thing
Saxton Tobin:about it. Just maybe, like, slowly work your way through it,
Saxton Tobin:instead of just gung-ho-ing it and being like, ah, trans folks.
Megan Tobin:You know, when, when, when you ask the question,
Megan Tobin:I think it's interesting, because I think you've already
Megan Tobin:kind of given the answers in previous podcasts and social
Megan Tobin:posts that, that this that you two have both posted. So, you
Megan Tobin:know, well, meaning people who want to take action, but don't
Megan Tobin:include the community, like people you can't make, you can't
Megan Tobin:make good positive change that positively affects that
Megan Tobin:community. If that if those people aren't represented at the
Megan Tobin:table, and it doesn't, and it's, it's the same with the
Megan Tobin:transgender community. It's the same with non binary, it's the
Megan Tobin:same with the LGB. So, and it's the same, it's the same with,
Megan Tobin:you know, any other diversity initiative, if those people
Megan Tobin:aren't at the table included in the conversation, any action may
Megan Tobin:be well meaning, but possibly very misguided. So, yeah. And,
Megan Tobin:and, you know, good. I know that when texten came out, I was
Megan Tobin:really gung ho to be super supportive. And, and, and some
Megan Tobin:things were great. And other things were maybe a little too
Megan Tobin:much too soon, you know, because I was just like, wanting to show
Megan Tobin:how much I cared and supported and so I had to really learn to
Megan Tobin:to listen more and do what what he wanted when he was ready. So,
Megan Tobin:yeah, yeah.
Saxton Tobin:Like, maybe a month after I came out, she was
Saxton Tobin:like, we're gonna get you on hormones. We're going to have
Saxton Tobin:surgery as soon as possible. And I was like, Okay. I was like,
Saxton Tobin:down. Like, I just said, I don't think I'm a girl. And she was
Saxton Tobin:like, oh, when I came out to her first thing said out of her
Saxton Tobin:mouth was we're not going to the penis store today, though,
Megan Tobin:that that's out of context. But that's another
Megan Tobin:story. I did way better the second time, he told me.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:Okay, okay. Well, that's, that's good. great
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:feedback, though, right? Because you're, there are many people
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:who so desperately want to be an ally, like Shaunna said, and
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:they want to do the right thing. And they're tripping over
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:themselves, right. But that could be at a speed that is
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:uncomfortable, or inappropriate for the person that they're
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:trying to support. Right. So taking a step back, and the
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:listening part that you've both mentioned, I think it's simple,
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:but Gosh, we're really bad at doing it. You know, like, you
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:know, we're, whatever community we're trying to support, you
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:know, a community we don't belong to, yeah, speak less,
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:Right. And I'm even thinking about so
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:listen more.
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:Saxon, I've had a number of students I'm, I'm a professor, I
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:teach in higher education. And so I have college students that
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:come to me, and I'm very grateful and feel blessed that
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:they would even think of feeling comfortable enough to come out
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:to me for any reason. And when they do in the beginning, many
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:years ago, I felt like I needed to say something like, I needed
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:a good script, or, you know, what do I say in response, etc.
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:And now, it's been more of sitting and listening. I usually
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:ask them if it's okay to give them a hug, and I've gotten 100%
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:out of 100 with that, some of them have completely wept.
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:Others of them have said Okay, great, now I feel okay enough to
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:go home and tell my parents or go tell someone else. And so I
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:don't even think I said any like nothing go here it I didn't say
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:anything at all. And I'm wondering if not saying anything
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:is okay. But it sounds like it is if it forces me or people
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:like us to listen more rather than jumping to a quick
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:conclusion. So it's, it kind of reminds me Lisa, of doing
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:diversity to people. Rather than being accepting of people. It's
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:like, Okay, I got a whole plan. This is what we don't do this
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:Saxton. Let's do it. And it's like, he even though that's my
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:type a go get it personality reining it in. And so I
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:appreciate what you're saying about listening first, doing
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:much later after we get greenlights to do so.
Saxton Tobin:It's you always want to get consent in any type
Saxton Tobin:of case with anybody whether you're going to do anything and
Saxton Tobin:no matter no matter what they say. Like if they're not saying
Saxton Tobin:like, Okay, go ahead and do this. Just wait.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:Yeah, it's it's so it's profound in its
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:simplicity, right. So I'm curious thinking about ally
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:ship, but taking it kind of beyond the individual. Whether
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:that's a friend or you know, someone you're in a race with,
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:or in In a workplace, how, what's your experience both been
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:with the national governing bodies? So in your case, it
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:would be USA Triathlon, presumably? How have you found
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:the experience in working with them to help them be more
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:inclusive and to make sure that you have a fantastic race
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:experience?
Saxton Tobin:Um, well, they were really good with my name
Saxton Tobin:change when I when I first came out, and I was getting
Saxton Tobin:everything kind of like set up and we couldn't legally change
Saxton Tobin:my name yet. But USA T was really quick with it. And like,
Saxton Tobin:I got a new card really fast. And then they changed the gender
Saxton Tobin:marker on it really, really fast. And so that was just
Saxton Tobin:really great. They were amazing with it. And I ended up
Saxton Tobin:competing in the boy in the, in the boys, or the male High
Saxton Tobin:School championship against the 18 year olds when I was 14.
Megan Tobin:So um, so I one of the things that moms of trans
Megan Tobin:kids should know is that there I think I've read a bunch of
Megan Tobin:articles about how moms tend to become unwitting training like
Megan Tobin:advocates, and legal experts, because you're advocating for
Megan Tobin:your child who can't legally do these things on their own, like
Megan Tobin:change their name, change their passport, change their birth
Megan Tobin:certificate, and every single thing is a fight every every
Megan Tobin:single thing, even in states where laws have been passed, to
Megan Tobin:make it easy or to protect the student, the child. It's still
Megan Tobin:it's still really hard. So and there's a lot of horror stories
Megan Tobin:that I even have about us, you know, for example, birth
Megan Tobin:certificates and passports where federal laws versus state laws
Megan Tobin:had us in these no man's land where it took years to get that
Megan Tobin:stuff changed. We were very lucky because we moved to San
Megan Tobin:Francisco about a year before Saxton told us. And yeah, it
Megan Tobin:wasn't actually it was not even a whole year, it was a couple
Megan Tobin:months. And it wasn't a huge surprise. But we were really
Megan Tobin:lucky that we lived here because because SF USD was really really
Megan Tobin:helpful and supportive, and changed his school records even
Megan Tobin:before it all the legal changes happen and then locked, kept
Megan Tobin:kept the originals but locked, it locked the record, so only we
Megan Tobin:can see it. Actually, no, they made one mistake, but but for
Megan Tobin:the most part, it was it. They did it in one day. Yeah. So they
Megan Tobin:did, they did stumble and make one mistake in the past couple
Megan Tobin:of years. But for the most part, they did that. And then the one
Megan Tobin:thing I wanted to call about the national governing bodies is our
Megan Tobin:position of privilege in this because to call it out, because
Megan Tobin:it is really, really different to be a young transgender woman
Megan Tobin:versus a young transgender man, you know, and Saxton I think is
Megan Tobin:keenly aware that he went from being a 14 year old, young white
Megan Tobin:woman to being a 14 year old, young white man, at least in
Megan Tobin:other people's eyes. He was always a man. But, um, and, and
Megan Tobin:that that that was far easier in terms of the national governing
Megan Tobin:body and sport than if he had been male to female athletes. We
Megan Tobin:they asked to get, you know, there weren't a hormone test
Megan Tobin:that we had to do or things like that, for him to be able to
Megan Tobin:compete. And so we were really very fortunate. I didn't mean it
Megan Tobin:was easy for him to compete, right. Especially emotionally, I
Megan Tobin:think. And we learned that it was it was a was a it was a very
Megan Tobin:emotional experience. And it was really mixed in terms of well,
Megan Tobin:you should tell it more than I should.
Saxton Tobin:But it was there was a lot of dysphoria that kind
Saxton Tobin:of played into when I was racing and kind of how I felt racing.
Saxton Tobin:And so that that really kind of changed. It really changed
Saxton Tobin:racing for me in general, when I started to just be in like, oh,
Saxton Tobin:like, that's why this has been making me uncomfortable or like,
Saxton Tobin:Oh, I really like it when when I have to wear the skin tight suit
Saxton Tobin:while I'm biking. So I'll wear like double layers. And then
Saxton Tobin:when I'm running over double layers to when I just get really
Saxton Tobin:tired, because I'm sweating like alot.
Megan Tobin:It was 100 degrees. The day that he raced for his
Megan Tobin:first male race. It was really hot. It was really competitive.
Saxton Tobin:And I was wearing like double layers over my suit
Saxton Tobin:and I didn't really drink a lot of water.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:But there was no cones. And then I said,
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:Yeah, that's a thank you for sharing that because I'm
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:thinking about you know, it sounds like the administrative
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:process at USA triathlon was fairly smooth and also in the
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:school district. But that's not the end of it, right? Like there
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:are these other components for trans athletes, particularly
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:maybe that very first race, where they're competing in the
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:agenda with which they identify and what that might feel like
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:and having support people around right to either debrief that or
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:cheer you on. It sounds like that's really important.
Saxton Tobin:Yeah, none of none of the other athletes really
Saxton Tobin:kind of like, knew, and like, I didn't tell anybody. Um, and she
Saxton Tobin:was like, her, my sister, and my stepdad were the only people who
Saxton Tobin:kind of, I guess he knew. And I didn't know anybody there from
Saxton Tobin:past races. I'm actually running races who have just been like,
Saxton Tobin:oh, you're in the male category now? And I'm like, yeah, and but
Saxton Tobin:so yeah, and but there, they were just nobody really knew it
Saxton Tobin:was great. One guy, I think kind of suspected it when we were at
Saxton Tobin:the pool. But like, right before we were about to jump in, but he
Saxton Tobin:didn't really say anything. He actually he actually stuck with
Saxton Tobin:me a little bit on the on the bike in the run, occasionally,
Saxton Tobin:before he passed me, of course. But he was he was really great.
Saxton Tobin:And afterwards, Afterwards, he kind of was just like, like,
Saxton Tobin:good job, man. Like, he kept emphasizing, like, dude, and all
Saxton Tobin:of that. And like guy, and I was like, I was like, thank you,
Saxton Tobin:thank you very much for that.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:Did that that felt validating, or it felt
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:too much.
Saxton Tobin:It felt validating. It was a little
Saxton Tobin:funny. I was kind of like, thank you for the support. Like Thank
Saxton Tobin:you. Thank you. I thank you. And then it was kind of like each
Saxton Tobin:time. That's nice.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:Right, right. Yeah. I was wondering,
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:going back to our earlier conversation of the over
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:enthusiastic person that wants to be an ally, and just goes way
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:over the top. But it's certainly Well, I mean, generationally,
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:right folks, who are your age or younger have grown up in a
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:completely different environment. That's not to say
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:it's easy, of course, I don't mean to imply that. But for
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:people, your mom's age, our age, right? It's just, there's a
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:different willingness to understand gender as a not a
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:binary and a more fluid category, right? It's not this,
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:it's not this rigid, structured piece. And Megan, I think you
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:have some perspectives on gender, right? gender generally.
Megan Tobin:That's a pretty broad part of the question. Did
Megan Tobin:you want to narrow that down? Because
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:I was I was giving you the floor to
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:feminists soapbox, but jet gender and sport? How about
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:that? How about you share some thoughts around? The fact that
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:sport is so rigidly stuck in a binary?
Megan Tobin:Well, I, you know, I think about this, I think
Megan Tobin:about this a lot. And, and you know, and we talked about it a
Megan Tobin:lot. And I also talked about it in terms of other trans athletes
Megan Tobin:in terms of non binary athletes. And when we talk about being,
Megan Tobin:you know, more inclusive and diverse, I absolutely include,
Megan Tobin:you know, I think one of the things is we get into forums,
Megan Tobin:and people are talking about being more diverse and
Megan Tobin:inclusive, and then you bring up trans athletes or non binary and
Megan Tobin:it's like, it's like, well, that's too hard. We just don't
Megan Tobin:even know how to deal with that. And, and like, and, and like,
Megan Tobin:pick a side, and you've got to do this. And, and, and it's and
Megan Tobin:it's and it's actually not that hard. If you think about it, I
Megan Tobin:don't like do it asked if I at one point, if I thought that
Megan Tobin:sports should be gender neutral. And I don't, I don't know that
Megan Tobin:we're there yet. Because first of all, the minute you even talk
Megan Tobin:about trans athletes competing, now, there's all these anti anti
Megan Tobin:trans laws, and there's a lot of fear and, and it's, and it's
Megan Tobin:like, oh, I just, you know, this is him. This is attacking
Megan Tobin:women's sports. And that's not what it's doing. I mean, Sport,
Megan Tobin:Sport has not been inclusive. And, and sport has not been
Megan Tobin:inclusive to women, and it's becoming more inclusive to
Megan Tobin:women. But it's not even there yet. And it's not fair and
Megan Tobin:equal. But equal isn't necessarily even 50/50 equals
Megan Tobin:everybody. And we have I think that if we're not there yet, we
Megan Tobin:need to be open, and be thinking about where we're going. Because
Megan Tobin:it's coming whether we like it or not. If you look at I think
Megan Tobin:if you're a race director, and you're not asking people their
Megan Tobin:pronouns, and if you're a race director, and you're not even
Megan Tobin:considering offering a non gendered category that is an
Megan Tobin:athlete's choice not mandated. I think you're, I think you should
Megan Tobin:you should be thinking about it because it's the wave of the
Megan Tobin:future. I mean, I don't believe that trans athletes should have
Megan Tobin:their own category. Absolutely not. But I also know that my non
Megan Tobin:binary athletes may want to race in one gender or another or not
Megan Tobin:at all, and they just want to race And I think that if we look
Megan Tobin:at gravel and cyclocross racing, they're paving. Pun intended,
Megan Tobin:though, but they're paving the way. Because they, you know, I
Megan Tobin:get a little nervous when it's like, oh, there's this new
Megan Tobin:category of it's not male or female, and I get a little
Megan Tobin:nervous because it's like, oh, then we'll just push people
Megan Tobin:there. And that's can, but, but if if athletes want to race in a
Megan Tobin:different category, and it's gender neutral, I absolutely
Megan Tobin:think that's a brilliant, brilliant idea and supportive.
Megan Tobin:And I think it's, it's where we can and should go. Because it,
Megan Tobin:it takes that out of it, you know, and I think if triathlon
Megan Tobin:doesn't think about it, and start and start thinking about
Megan Tobin:it, I mean, we you mentioned, our age group versus their age
Megan Tobin:group, and our kids and our kids, most of our kids get this
Megan Tobin:or not everybody, but our kids get this AR kit, right vendor in
Megan Tobin:a very different way than we then then we were prescribed.
Megan Tobin:And if we don't adapt and change, there will be kids that
Megan Tobin:age, like our sport will sort of become a dinosaur. Because
Megan Tobin:Because I think that Saxons, I think Sexton's generation and
Megan Tobin:the generations younger than him, will, they'll pursue other
Megan Tobin:sports where they feel that they are more welcome, they're
Megan Tobin:included than that they can really truly be themselves, and
Megan Tobin:that they can compete on a level playing field. So
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:that's such a great point that triathlon or
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:other Endurance Sports will essentially be a dinosaur.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:Right?
Megan Tobin:I hope not, because it's a sport I love right. But
Megan Tobin:if it but I think any sport that maintain such a risk, like I
Megan Tobin:think a lot of people are shoring up to protect things and
Megan Tobin:are, are to protect women's sports to protect the sport or
Megan Tobin:that sport. And, um, and it's not protecting it, it's actually
Megan Tobin:making it it's, it's putting a moat around the castle that
Megan Tobin:doesn't have electricity and plumbing, you know, it's not
Megan Tobin:modern, it's, it's not gonna, you're not going to be able to
Megan Tobin:exist in there. If you if you shore up your walls, you really
Megan Tobin:need to find a way to make it open and welcoming and, or you
Megan Tobin:will, you know, I sure hope but I sure hope that triathlon is
Megan Tobin:not a dinosaur, because I have a few more years and left in me.
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:I keep joking that I will eventually go
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:to Kona, even if I'm 90, I will eventually race in Kona. But my
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:whole point is, we want to stay on the cutting edge of the sport
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:so that we can all see our sport last just as long as we or our
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:bodies do. So you know, in when I'm 80 or 90, hopefully, I will
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:see Saxton there, if you so choose, I want us to be there.
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:And so I think it's interesting, you know, just to think about
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:that dinosaur piece definitely. I'm also wondering, too, you
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:know, when it comes to this work, Lisa and I always kind of
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:put our armor on to get ready for the resistors. Right, the
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:people that you know, they're going to give every single what
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:I call PLE every perfectly logical explanation why
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:something wouldn't work shouldn't work, why it's going
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:to be a problem with it. Well, what if someone says that
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:they're one thing, but they're really another because they want
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:the competitive advantage, etc? How do you all respond to the
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:people that are resistant because we know they're out
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:there? Hopefully, none of them are listeners of this podcast.
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:But let's let's give them a rationale as to why we should
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:think through these really creative, innovative and many of
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:them easy ways to make triathlon more inclusive. What would you
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:say to a resistor?
Saxton Tobin:Um, well, I personally say like, yeah,
Saxton Tobin:totally, I went through surgery and hormones and coming out to
Saxton Tobin:all of my friends and family, just so I can race in the male
Saxton Tobin:division where I kind of have a bit of a disadvantage, because I
Saxton Tobin:am smaller and don't really have that much muscle mass compared
Saxton Tobin:to the 18 year old guys that I race against. And yeah, and
Saxton Tobin:trans women go through the exact same thing where they go higher
Saxton Tobin:up in the murder statistics, just because they are who they
Saxton Tobin:are just so they can race with women and win medals because
Saxton Tobin:that's totally worth it and have to take hormones that decrease
Saxton Tobin:their performance. Yeah, in order to be able to compete and
Saxton Tobin:they lose muscle mass and they will go through, like mood
Saxton Tobin:swings that they don't even know are happening sometimes. And so
Saxton Tobin:it's very scary for everybody.
Megan Tobin:Yeah, I would say similarly, you know, when you
Megan Tobin:it's, it's about it's also about it's about listening and
Megan Tobin:listening to those perfectly logical answers. And then, you
Megan Tobin:know, it's once again, it's like you have to gauge who you're
Megan Tobin:talking to and if they're willing to have a conversation
Megan Tobin:and willing to learn, like, do they want to listen and learn.
Megan Tobin:And that's when it's, that's when it's good to engage in
Megan Tobin:conversation. And I think that I know, even some professional
Megan Tobin:athletes who I've had this conversation with who initially
Megan Tobin:were like, I'm not sure how I feel, because this is my
Megan Tobin:livelihood. And I've been able to have been able over time to
Megan Tobin:share things with them, and statistics and reality, and now
Megan Tobin:have them very happily. And something I'm really proud of is
Megan Tobin:like they're now sharing stories, and sharing trans
Megan Tobin:stories and trans and support for trans athletes were a year
Megan Tobin:ago, in an interview, they were not sure. And that's those are
Megan Tobin:the conversations worth having. Because here's the thing, trans
Megan Tobin:athletes, I think, this year, we're going to see at the
Megan Tobin:Olympics, we're going to, we're going to see some of our first
Megan Tobin:out openly trans athletes competing, and it's going to be
Megan Tobin:really interesting. But keep in mind, the IOC has had trans
Megan Tobin:policy has had policies about transgender athletes
Megan Tobin:participating for almost 25 years. And the number of trans
Megan Tobin:athletes who have stolen medals, or you know, who are who are
Megan Tobin:pretending to be trans or stolen medals or whatever is is
Megan Tobin:literally zero, the number of college scholarships that like
Megan Tobin:Saxton said that, that males who are pretending to be females
Megan Tobin:have stolen from female athletes is also zero. So it's, it's
Megan Tobin:creating problems that don't exist, and miseducation, to
Megan Tobin:scare people, and to have them sort of shore up and protect
Megan Tobin:what they think are things are being attacked. And as often
Megan Tobin:happens, it's it's genuinely people from places of privilege
Megan Tobin:that are spreading misinformation, and causing
Megan Tobin:people who are, who don't feel like they're in a position of
Megan Tobin:privilege to kind of try to hold on to the few privileges that
Megan Tobin:they have. And I also think that transphobia, especially in
Megan Tobin:sport, is rooted very deeply in misogony.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:Yes,
Megan Tobin:I can't compete, like, like, men are going to
Megan Tobin:come and take with like, it's a million men being it, there are
Megan Tobin:women who are very concerned about this, who I think, to me
Megan Tobin:are, are buying the hype. But but it generally is men who are
Megan Tobin:suddenly protecting women's sports who have never done a
Megan Tobin:damn thing for women's sports ever. Right? Yeah. and telling
Megan Tobin:me I need and telling me in their white knight suits that I
Megan Tobin:need to be protected, because I'm weak, and inferior. And, you
Megan Tobin:know, I'm a middle to back of the packer. But I'm competing
Megan Tobin:against myself. And I, I'm not I don't I don't feel intimidated
Megan Tobin:or scared to compete against men. And I don't think, you
Megan Tobin:know, female athletes should either. And I think as, as
Megan Tobin:you've seen, with Title Nine, the gap between women's
Megan Tobin:performance is, is closing it between men's and women's
Megan Tobin:performance. And if you look at ultra runners and ultra
Megan Tobin:distances, women are outperforming men all the time,
Megan Tobin:and maybe you know, that we're different. And we have different
Megan Tobin:strengths and weaknesses. And we're not less than, and I just
Megan Tobin:I get so fed up with that protection that people think we
Megan Tobin:need.
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:Well i'm i'm waiting to see we've seen it
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:happen or get close to happening when it was at Ironman World
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:Championships, but in other races as well, where even the
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:photography or the videography is not set up for women speed.
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:So the fact that Oh, we're anticipating because the women's
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:pack started an hour and a half later that, Oh, no, that woman
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:on that bike might catch up with that guy. So get your camera's
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:ready people, because she's on the way, you know. And so I just
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:think it's interesting how it's embedded in the entire system.
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:But I wanted to go back with you to what you said before, you
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:know, I think it's really important for us to not feed
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:into what I call fiction narratives where people just
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:create this whole story with no facts at all. No one's stolen
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:any metals from anyone. And for us, and for listeners to this
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:podcast, we really want to prepare people to interrupt
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:those fiction narratives. It's just simply not true. The data
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:doesn't support it. professional organizations don't support it,
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:our membership organizations don't support it. It is pure
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:myth busting out here. Like truly people are walking around
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:with these myths that you're bringing up here.
Megan Tobin:And and you got to remember though, that, like I
Megan Tobin:said, it's like having the conversations with the people
Megan Tobin:that are open and willing to listen because I've had that
Megan Tobin:mythbusting conversation with athletes were like, well,
Megan Tobin:Ironman should do this or USAT should do that. Or and it's like
Megan Tobin:Yeah, they they actually have they have, they have policies,
Megan Tobin:and they've done a lot of work on this. And they follow the IOC
Megan Tobin:recommendations. And and that was based on science. And still
Megan Tobin:people are like, Yeah, but Ironman need to do something.
Megan Tobin:And it's like, Did you just miss that entire conversation that I
Megan Tobin:just said that they they've been following the science, they've
Megan Tobin:been working with the IOC, and they've had policies for 20
Megan Tobin:years. They are doing something. And you're, and that's so yeah.
Megan Tobin:And and I just, I'm with you on that. I like I like the fiction
Megan Tobin:narrative topic, because and then you kind of figure out, oh,
Megan Tobin:but you're a fan of fiction. So I'm not going to win here. So
Saxton Tobin:A lot of people don't really use Google as much
Saxton Tobin:as they should, when doing their own research on kind of just
Saxton Tobin:everything that relates to transact weights. They think
Saxton Tobin:that checkout and well, I guess, every social media app, other
Saxton Tobin:than Google is a very viable source.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:Yeah, I mean, do your own research,
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:right, because that's the thing we've talked about a lot is that
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:people who have a privileged identity, so if that's a white
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:person, right, they shouldn't be relying on communities of color
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:to educate them. And so a cisgender person, so I don't
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:think we gave that definition naturally. But cisgender is
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:someone whose gender identity matches the gender that they
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:were assigned at birth. And, um, you know, they don't, I've lost
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:my train of thought after you get to that definition. What was
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:I going to say?
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:It's late on the east coast Lisa.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:I don't really have an excuse, I don't
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:really have an excuse. So, okay, well, maybe that so will come
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:back to me. But I appreciate what I do want to say is I
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:appreciate your both of you identifying kind of that
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:misogyny and sexism that underscores so much of
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:transphobia that trans athletes experience, right, this rigid
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:belief that if someone is assigned female, they are
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:therefore a woman, they are therefore heterosexual, right?
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:And they therefore behave in this way, and behaving in this
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:way is weaker, weaker than men, and thus, trans women have an
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:unfair advantage. And it's all rooted in that. So coming back
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:to systems coming back to systems. So, okay, I think we
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:should wrap up. But I don't want to go without
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:I don't wanna, I don't wanna, I don't
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:want. I have so much more to learn. This is scratching the
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:surface.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:Yes. Um, I would love to hear from both of
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:you, if you feel willing to share, we have a number of
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:parents, relatives, close family friends, right? Who perhaps are
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:struggling or don't know how best to support a young person
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:in their life, who is coming forward with their true gender
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:identity and, and wanting to articulate that, you know, so as
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:a mom as a son, do you have any advice or tips from kind of both
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:of your perspectives about how, how parents, family members,
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:guardians can be most supportive?
Saxton Tobin:Well, I will, personally, I would say, kind of
Saxton Tobin:let your kid do their own research on how they identify,
Saxton Tobin:like, don't try and be like, Oh, I think like, oh, maybe this
Saxton Tobin:like might be a phase or don't, don't say that. Like, even if it
Saxton Tobin:is don't say it, because you're just you're just kind of
Saxton Tobin:demeaning how they feel, you need to, you need to just sit
Saxton Tobin:back and watch them grow and watch them kind of figure out
Saxton Tobin:who they are as a person. And that's kind of like the most
Saxton Tobin:that you can do is just let them be themselves. Don't try and
Saxton Tobin:shove them into a little corner of being like, oh, we're this
Saxton Tobin:we're that we're this like, like, if you're going to a
Saxton Tobin:family function, and they want to wear something, let them wear
Saxton Tobin:it, like, let them express how they are, how they feel. Let
Saxton Tobin:them use whatever pronouns they want, or go by any name that
Saxton Tobin:they want, when they're out in public. Like, just let them be
Saxton Tobin:themselves.
Megan Tobin:I would say it goes back to what we were talking
Megan Tobin:about before about listening and learning, and I love you so
Megan Tobin:much. I'm really proud of so um, but so what I was saying is, a
Megan Tobin:lot of times as a parent, there's, you know, first of all,
Megan Tobin:I think there's this protective mama bear thing, which I have,
Megan Tobin:which now just doesn't include my child that includes all trans
Megan Tobin:kids. I'm pretty protective about all trans kids now. But
Megan Tobin:it's listening and letting them be themselves and figure it out
Megan Tobin:as they figure it out. And it's not a it's not it's so not about
Megan Tobin:me. And about like, like, I hear people, I see things where
Megan Tobin:people are talking about like, well, it's hard for me to
Megan Tobin:remember. And it's hard for me to remember the new name. And
Megan Tobin:it's, it's gonna be hard for grandma. And it's like, it's
Megan Tobin:actually not that hard. And it's not about you. And I think that
Megan Tobin:the turning points for us were when we first started, it was
Megan Tobin:like, okay, all of the research, all of the science, all of the
Megan Tobin:books, all of the, you know, all of the support groups that we
Megan Tobin:can join and learn about and how we can be supportive. And, you
Megan Tobin:know, I think the first things were the stats about suicide,
Megan Tobin:and, and kids who don't feel heard or recognized or accepted.
Megan Tobin:And, um, and it scared the bejesus out of me. And that's
Megan Tobin:the nice words I can find. But, and so it became really
Megan Tobin:important to, to find the right words when you don't have them.
Megan Tobin:And, and that was really about, like, tell me what you need
Megan Tobin:telling me what to do. And, but don't but but know you don't
Megan Tobin:have to correct me when I get the name wrong. And you don't
Megan Tobin:have to, it's not your job to tell to for me to be better.
Megan Tobin:It's my job for me to be better. And I think it's the same way,
Megan Tobin:just when you were talking about being a good ally, it's the same
Megan Tobin:way in terms of being a good parent. And, and it's it's your
Megan Tobin:lucky parent when your kids get to teach you every day. So and I
Megan Tobin:think you mentioned the one thing I wanted to make sure I
Megan Tobin:talked about was, you mentioned it about the trans legislation
Megan Tobin:happening. There's a lot of anti trans legislation going on right
Megan Tobin:now. It's pretty disturbing. Florida just had a new anti
Megan Tobin:trans bill that was signed on the first day of Pride Month,
Megan Tobin:which is this month, and but I will leave, leave it on a
Megan Tobin:positive and that if you do want to educate yourself about trans
Megan Tobin:youth and sport, I highly recommend a documentary, which
Megan Tobin:is now on Hulu called Changing the Game. And it just came out
Megan Tobin:on Hulu this month. So you can go watch it for free. And if you
Megan Tobin:can get through that thing without crying and hugging your
Megan Tobin:kids, I don't know what kind of I mean, I like I don't know, I
Megan Tobin:couldn't watch it without crying. And I'm wanting to hug
Megan Tobin:every trans kid I've ever met. So it's just really moving. And
Megan Tobin:I think that it's a good place to start. Just to humanize the
Megan Tobin:topic for you. So if this kid isn't cute enough, and
Megan Tobin:convincing enough to make you want to educate yourself.
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:Oh, super convincing, super
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:convincing. So we already know, Lisa, we have some homework to
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:do. Hopefully, we will see Saxton soon enough. So we can
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:ask for a big ol hug of thanks for being on our podcast, if you
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:don't mind. But Lisa, I think we got a lot of good information. I
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:think we need to practice our deep listening skills. Sometimes
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:we hear people but we're not listening to them. So I'm really
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:appreciative of how you all just kind of hammered that home to us
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:that hey, let's let's sit back let's let's not be too eager
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:here. But definitely be open and willing to be led, be led by
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:folks to tell us what they need and what they want in the right
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:timing. So thank you so much for sharing your experience. Lisa, I
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:cannot believe how lucky we were to get both of them on this
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:podcast. How cool is that?
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:Super cool. And I just want to echo Shauna
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:and deep gratitude for you sharing a pot of yourselves with
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:us today. I hope that our listeners get a ton out of it
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:because I know that I did. And this is a journey. And this was
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:35 minutes, right and there's a lot more to discuss and there's
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:a lot more to do so. Please go out and educate yourselves.
Dr. Lisa Ingarfield:Please make a difference because it's really important.
Dr. Shaunna Payne Gold:The unfaced podcast and all things
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