Over the years, United States women’s soccer star Megan Rapinoe has not been shy about expressing her political and social and using her platform to create change. And as she heads into her final World Cup with the United States Women’s National Team, she’s doing that once again.
During a recent interview with TIME Magazine, Megan Rapinoe spoke out against anti-trans rhetoric, calling out comedian Dave Chappelle along with tennis star Martina Navratilova and ESPN anchor Sage Steele for their harmful words to the transgender community.
“I don’t want to mince words about it,” Rapinoe told TIME. “Dave Chappelle making jokes about trans people directly leads to violence, whether it’s verbal or otherwise, against trans people. When Martina or Sage or whoever are talking about this, people aren’t hearing it just in the context of elite sports. They’re saying, ‘The rest of my life, this is how I’m going to treat trans people.’”
Rapinoe has made it clear that she is an advocate for the transgender community, even declaring that she would welcome a transgender woman competing for or against her women’s soccer team in accordance with her gender identity.
Her message to the sports world was very clear.
[TIME]
