Child, nine, says she was ‘crying and hurt’ after vile transphobic school sports day abuse
High school students staged a walk-out in support of trans student-athletes. (Getty)
A nine-year-old girl has said she hopes the abuse hurled at her by a transphobe during a school sports day can bring change to the world.
The anonymous cisgender child-athlete from British Columba was the subject of immense ridicule after an elderly man publicly berated her, thinking she was transgender because she has short hair.
Before beginning a Grades 4 and 5 shot-put challenge at her local school, the man hurled abusive comments at her, which she said destroyed her confidence.
“My first two throws weren’t that good because I was crying and hurt because of what he said,” she told the Vancouver Sun.
“What made me do a better last throw was that there were lots of bystanders supporting me and it was making me feel more confident and safe.”
According to the girl, the man began demanding certification to prove her gender identity before he stopped and targeted another girl.
Attempts were reportedly made to stop his abuse, but he continued with the verbal attack, screaming at onlookers to “get that boy off the field”.
He then directed his anger towards the girl’s mother, calling her a genital mutilator, groomer and paedophile.
‘The hope of making change’
The girl’s mother said that, following the incident, her daughter had managed to turn the abuse into an opportunity to help spread positivity.
“When I dropped her off at school she said maybe it happened, the story is going viral, for her birthday this week.
“She said it’s her birthday gift for turning 10, the hope of making a change.”
School district superintendent Kevin Kaardal said that the man had been identified and that work was underway to completely ban him from future events.
“The persons who accosted the student and family were not from one of our Central Okanagan public schools,” Kaardal said.
“We took steps through the school act. We will be serving them with a [letter] which prevents them from being on any district property or any district events.”
Kelowna Regional RCMP police confirmed they had begun investigation proceedings, but could not share further information due to the Privacy Act.
“We want to encourage you to continue to be a strong voice and to show your allyship, support, public positions and commitment to diversity and inclusion,” a spokesperson said.
