caster semenya

true confession time - i've always been a little uneasy with the "t" in lgbt (for those not familiar with this particular acronym, "lgbt" stands for "lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender."). "l" "g" and "b" all go together because they're all about sexual orientation. but, the "t" is about gender identity. and while i get sexual orientation, i have a difficult time wrapping my brain around the idea of being trans or even gender ambiguous. that some context behind my comments that follow; that is, i didn't think that i would have such a visceral reaction to the story that emerged today ...

today a young woman (18) from south africa, caster semenya, blew away the competition in the 800m at the world championships in berlin. but, instead of doing the round of celebratory interviews she was whisked away for gender identity testing. apparently, her competition was pissed that she made them look flat out slow and decided to cry foul. semenya is definitely gender ambiguous - i'll give them that. she's big. she's muscular. she's even a little bit hairy. she's faster - way faster - than the rest of the women. but, it smacks of a little phobia to say that just because of these factors she might not be a woman.

the african national congress said it best -

"we condemn the motives of those who have made it their business to question her gender due to her physique and running style. such comments can only serve to portray women as being weak."