Anjali Ajmani | Feb 28, 2023
When I was a pre-teen and had just discovered YouTube, I used to sit at my desk and watch Bethany Hamilton interviews, the ones following her shark attack. I thought it was cool that someone young who had lost so much was still able to speak about all the positive things in her life. Later, I read a fictitious book about a teenager who was attacked by a shark. I went on to watch Soul Surfer and, as I grew, began following Bethany on Facebook and Instagram. I follow Alana Blanchard and Ocean Ramsey as well. They inspired me in their own ways: Bethany because she surfs with one arm, Alana because she used to be afraid of sharks, and Ocean because she swims with sharks on a daily basis.
Sadly, Bethany Hamilton posted her “thoughts” about the World Surf League’s decision to allow transgender women to surf alongside cis-gendered women in competition.
Below is part of a comment from Bethany’s Instagram posts.
“…you have to think long term and what things could look like in 20-50 years. For example a young male from a poverty stricken country may decide to suppress his hormones in hopes to make money and get out of poverty. When he may not succeed in the mens division but he may thrive with the women. Kinda an extreme example. But I find it strange seeing in other sports men who did not find the success they wanted and switch to the women’s and then did succeed.”
Bethany is fearful of an uptick in the transgender population in the future—an uptick, that she claims, will hurt women. What Bethany doesn’t realize is that cis-gendered women will also be affected by these changes—many organizations, including Surf Equity, see these bills as a means to placate right-wing voters by using transgender people as pawns, something that will negatively impact the reproductive freedom of cis-gendered women.
Bethany attempted to persuade her fans that she strives to love all—she also has an Instagram post, urging her young fans to find a passion. Is this message directed at cis-gendered fans? Bethany Hamilton isn’t on tour with the World Surf League. She will not be competing in the Olympics. Her response to the World Surf League’s trans inclusion policy is not brave or feminist. It is self-serving and opportunistic.
Ocean Ramsey came out in agreement with Bethany, saying that she ‘hoped transgender people would be nice.’ What is that supposed to mean? Human rights have not been achieved by simply “playing nice.”
Even Tulsi Gabbard praised Bethany, throwing in the adjective, “powerful.” Other surfers jumped on Bethany’s board, including Carissa Moore and Kelly Slater. Gabbard became a republican just last year, much to the displeasure of left-wing voters.
There are people scrolling at night, seeking validation, and, instead of validation, they are watching videos regarding the very thing that no job in the United States is supposed to ever tolerate: DISCRIMINATION.
The comments section of the two Instagram posts that Bethany published contain hateful rhetoric, describing livelihoods as just “costumes” and declaring that transgender people need “mental help.” Other comments highlight “Christian” viewpoints in an attempt to somehow rationalize transphobia in a country which loves to tout the Constitution, the document whose first amendment makes it quite clear that freedom of religion is an active tenet in the lives of the American People.
Transgender athletes are a small, marginalized portion of the population, and non-intersectional feminism is a big talking point amongst white, Christian women. Transgender women athletes do not dominate women’s sports. People realize that, but some of them are using their platforms for fear, dressing their responses like a TERF, and passing them off into the webspace as opinions. This form of online terrorism is called “opinionated facts,” and it is prevalent in American society.