Justine Lindsay is a talented dancer and cheerleader who represents the North Carolina Panthers cheer squad, the TopCats. In 2022, Lindsay made sports history as the first openly transgender cheerleader in the NFL. During her second year as an NFL cheerleader, she is facing both positive and negative feedback in regard to her identity and her participation in athletics.
Growing up and coming into her authentic self, Justine Lindsay struggled greatly. Luckily, Lindsay’s family has always expressed support of her identity. She said in an interview with Elle, that the support she feels outweighs the criticism she receives. This is all that matters to her, “As long as I had the support from the man upstairs and my family, that just exed out anybody else that questioned who I was.” She continued to say, “The love outweighed the hate.”
Lindsay did not want to compromise her goals as becoming a cheer athlete on the biggest professional stage, the National Football League, so as a young girl, she kept at her goals. Through her hard work and dedication, she earned a spot on the TopCats squad, achieving the feat of being the first transgender cheerleader in the NFL. Being on this large of a stage, it was difficult for Lindsay to traditionally fit in. She felt an immense amount of pressure when entering the space saying, “I have to stand out for all the right reasons.”
Historically, there is a massive lack of representation in NFL cheerleading. The majority of NFL cheerleaders look one type of way. Although this stereotype is very real and can be very harmful, people like Justine Lindsay are uprising and breaking barriers. People like this are paving the way for people who are discriminated against due to their identity.
Although Lindsay has faced great success so far in her time with the TopCats, policies restricting the rights of transgender individuals are becoming more rigid. North Carolina has established legislation that prevents people with transgender identities from participating in sports. Lindsay is using her platform to fight against this restrictive legislation. In her interview with Elle, she is quoted as saying, “I will fight until I can’t anymore.” With the restrictive legislation emerging in North Carolina against the participation of transgender athletes in sports, Lindsay is facing both immense backlash as well as a slew of support. “There’s a lot of people that if it doesn’t fit into a box, they have a hard time understanding it” -saidTopCats coach, Chandalae Lanouette. Given the polarization of the topic of trans people in sports, there are a mix of opinions surfacing. Despite the challenges that Justine Lindsay has faced, and is still facing today, she set an example for the community of transgender youth while consecutively fighting against the harmful legislation turning up in North Carolina.
Marcus • Oct 6, 2023 at 10:10 am
Here is my issue with transgenders in sports, specifically a man who is now a woman.. You cannot change genetics, the transgender athlete is going to be inherently stronger, most likely taller and just outright bigger than a natural born woman. For them to compete in women sports just because they changed their gender, gives them an out right advantage to other women. Should transgenders be allowed to play in sports?? Absolutely, but only in the same legue and with other atheletes as their natural gender.