As America debates the "right" of a biological male (who "identifies" as a female) to compete with true biological females, it occurs to me the debate over allowing transgenders to compete against biological females is also a valuable example for the debate of the concept of "equality" verses the concept of "equity".
In my lexicon, I define equality as providing the same level of opportunity and assistance to all segments of society (including race and sex, equity is providing various levels of support and assistance depending on specific needs or abilities.
Federal laws, such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, provide equality, while policies such as affirmative action provide equity.
Considering men's and women's sports, the same applies. If you accept my definitions, since "equity" is about providing "various levels of support and assistance depending on specific needs or abilities" and there is no way to compensate for the physiological differences between men and women (without introducing unnatural variables), the only way to create "equity" was to separate the groups along biological lines.
In this case, "separate but equal" is the only way for women's sports to exist without becoming extinct - and based the premise that women's sport is desirable and necessary for the advancement of women and society, society applied this very logical, common sense solution to the problem.
But true equality would entail having one competition, one league per sport open to all with no distinction of sex, and then let the chips fall where they may. I think it is logical to deduce in most, if not all, sports, that action would mean near, if not total, eradication of female competitors (and in the ultimate twist of irony, likely all transgender competitors as well).
It also exposes the fact that the very people who are out preaching the Gospel of Equity are those also working to destroy it.
"Equity" is always a delicate balancing act - if any person who is not a biological female, regardless of how they "identify" is allowed to compete against biological females, that delicate balance is destroyed.
Because "equity" is ALWAYS a balancing act, it always presents the opportunity for corruption. The very basic questions of how and who defines the "specific needs or abilities" and what "levels of support and assistance" are required by the target group are always part of the discussion.
That's really what this is about - it is about power, as it always is with the left. It is about who decides for whom, and finding a way to always be that "who" who gets to decide.
"Equity" is just another sham, another con, simply and obviously designed to allow the worst to get on top.