Trump admin cracks down on Oregon and Virginia for defying Title IX and women's sports executive order

Oregon teens Lily Hammond, Maddie Eischen, Sophia Carpenter and Alexa Anderson tell Fox News Digital about the experiences that drove them to speak out against trans athletes in girls' sports.

The U.S. Department of Education ramped up its campaign against schools defying Title IX and President Donald Trump's executive order on Friday. 

Secretary Linda McMahon announced actions against the states of Oregon and Virginia for their policies on gender ideology. 

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Oregon State Capitol Building (Getty Images)

In Oregon, McMahon is launching an investigation against the state's Department of Education (ODE) after a high school sports season that featured multiple incidents involving trans athletes in girls' sports that garnered public attention, and two lawsuits over the matter. 

"If Oregon is permitting males to compete in women’s sports, it is allowing these males to steal the accolades and opportunities that female competitors have rightfully earned through hard work and grit, while callously disregarding women’s and girls’ safety, dignity, and privacy. Title IX does not permit that shameful arrangement, and we will not tolerate it," said Craig Trainor, the acting assistant secretary for the DOE's office of civil rights (OCR).

On Thursday, Oregon girls' track athletes Alexa Anderson and Reese Eckard filed a lawsuit against the Oregon School Athletics Association (OSAA) after an incident at the state's track and field championships on the last day of May. Anderson and Eckard alleged that the OSAA not only excluded them from official photos, but also withheld their medals. The suit argues that the girls' First Amendment rights were infringed upon by the officials.

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