It’s been a week since Gov. Chris Sununu signed a pair of bills into law that place new restrictions on transgender youth. Among them was a bill that bans trans girls in middle and high school from playing on girls’ sports teams.
Parker Tirrell is a sophomore at Plymouth Regional High School, and a starter on the girls’ varsity soccer team. She spoke with NHPR earlier this year about her experience as a trans athlete and the role soccer, and the community it provides, have played in her life.
Parker and her mother, Sara Tirrell, spoke with NHPR’s All Things Considered host Julia Furukawa about how these new laws are affecting their family.
Transcript
Parker, what was your reaction when you found out that the governor had signed off on this bill?
Well, I had just gotten home from camp for a couple of days. The day that he passed it, actually, I got COVID. [It] wasn't great. It was pretty crushing. [I] felt kind of hopeless. I just kind of…I disassociated, laid in my bed, tried to not think about how horrible it was.
And Sara, what was that like for you in the Tirrell household?
It was a pretty tough day. Like Parker said, she tested positive for COVID. About an hour later, we learned that the governor had signed those three bills. I think I shed more tears that day than Parker. But we couldn't really be sad together because of the COVID diagnosis. So Parker was sort of isolated in her room, and I was sort of crying in my office, and we're all feeling sad. It was pretty heartbreaking, she and I, and her dad, my husband Zach, spent a lot of time advocating and talking with press and getting Parker's story out there and trying to sort of help people understand our perspective. Even though we did all of those things and a lot of bills were defeated, we didn't quite get there at the end. It's pretty tough.
Parker, school is starting soon. I know you're away at camp right now, but have you heard anything from your teammates and your coach?
They don't pay attention to it as much as I do. And I haven't really reached out to them because, it's more of, I want them to enjoy their summer, and I don't want them to have to be worrying about this right now. So I haven't really talked to them, but it's going to be a pretty hard confrontation during preseason, [when] I’m like, hey, can't really do this anymore.
And Sara, have you been in touch with the school yet? I know this is very recent.
Not yet. Parker's coach and team have all been very supportive. We got a nice note from him, I think, on Facebook the day of. I reached out recently just to sort of check in about what happens with preseason. The law doesn't go into effect for 30 days, can Parker still at least play with the team for a little bit until she can't? So kind of waiting to hear back on that.
LGBTQ rights activists are already speaking out against this bill and others restricting the rights of trans youth in New Hampshire. And legal action could be in the future. A federal appeals court recently sided with the trans athlete who challenged a similar ban in West Virginia. Parker, what does pushing back on this law look like to you? And is that something that you want to be involved in?
In any way that I can, I would like to help block this law, and [ensure] any sort of law anywhere like this to not happen. It's crushing for anyone in a situation like me. And it's horrible. I have trans friends that feel horrible, that are crushed, because they can't do something they love. This is my, I think, 12th year of playing soccer. It's like 12 years of my life are just gone, flushed down the drain, [they] don't matter anymore.
How are you taking care of yourself throughout that as you consider the action you might want to take?
I talk to my friends. They support me, they comfort me. And I've cried. I've held my cat before and cried into it once. She's very sweet and tolerant of my shenanigans. I talked to my parents about it a little bit. But it's a unique situation, it's not really easy to relate to. It's hard to find comfort in stuff like this because it's a lot for even me to handle. Just to figure out a way to not let it affect me entirely.
And Sarah, I'll turn that question to you. When it comes to activism and challenging laws like this, have you considered getting involved in that capacity?
Yeah, we've talked about it. We've talked to some lawyers and we're considering our options. I don't think that we're done with advocacy by any stretch of the imagination. I think a lot of that depends on Parker's stamina as well. Obviously we're involved with several advocacy organizations.
Then as the next legislative cycle comes up, we'll probably be involved, depending on what sort of bills come back up. And I'll take Parker's lead on where she's comfortable going and testifying for committees and that sort of thing. I went and held signs a bunch [this legislative session], but I didn't bring Parker to all of those events, because there are obviously plenty of people on the other side holding signs, too. And I still hesitate to involve my 15-year-old in all of the hatred that tends to swirl around these things. As much as we can, we still try and shield her where possible.
I think it's important to remember that in the state of New Hampshire, we have a pretty vulnerable trans youth population, and it feels pretty crummy to be attacking that small population that needs our love and support instead of focusing on more important issues. There are plenty of things that we, as a state, could be working on to make our children safer, to make our state healthier, to make our state more prosperous. Whatever your goals are, there are plenty of other things that we could work on. And this is such a small and vulnerable population, it feels really frustrating to spend so much time and energy bringing them down instead of raising the whole state up.
Parker, you're a lifelong soccer player. What does it mean to you, that at least for right now, you can't access the sport that you love in the way that you always have?
It's hard to put into words. It's like they took away a part of me, a part of my soul, a part of my being. They stole that from me. And I don't know if I'm going to be able to get it back.
Will soccer continue to be a part of your life?
In any way that I can be involved. Yes.
