by WorldTribune Staff / 247 Real News March 26, 2026

On the subject of what is a woman, Pennsylvania Democrats refused to go there, unlike the International Olympic Committee.

Pennsylvania House Democrats withdrew consideration of a resolution honoring March as “National Women’s Month” after a Republican lawmaker filed an amendment to include the physiological definition of “woman” in the text.

“What was expected to be a quick, symbolic vote instead turned into a brief but telling floor moment, with Republicans forcing the question into the open and Democrats opting to shelve the resolution rather than define ‘woman’ in legislation — leading to an eruption of laughter on the House floor,” Fox News Digital noted.

During Tuesday’s legislative sessions, Pennsylvania state House Speaker Joanna McClinton asked the clerk to introduce House Resolution 390.

The bill, from state Rep. Carol Hill-Evans, a Democrat from York, recognized March as Women’s History Month in Pennsylvania. Hill-Evans wrote in her presentation of the bill that it “celebrat[es] the extraordinary accomplishments of women,” which “too often go unacknowledged.”

“Will the House agree to the resolution?” McClinton asked the chamber, in which the Democrats hold a slim 102-100 majority.

The clerk indicated that state Rep. Aaron Bernstine, a Republican from Ellwood City, had an amendment to offer, and McClinton recognized him to introduce it.

“Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, this amendment is very straightforward and clear,” Bernstine announced. “It defines what a woman actually is — because we do know what that is. Thank you.”

“The resolution is temporarily over,” McClinton quickly announced, sparking loud laughter from the chamber.

Bernstine later said: “What happened was the speaker withdrew the resolution… because we would have had people vote on defining what a woman actually is. So they pulled it because they were scared to define what a woman actually is.”

Meanwhile, the International Olympic Committee on Thursday announced a new policy that will allow only biological females to compete in women’s sports.

The policy bans male athletes identifying as females from competing in women’s events.

According to the policy, eligibility to perform in women’s sports will first be based on SRY gene screening “to detect the absence or presence of the SRY gene,” the IOC said in a statement. The tests determine if the person has a male Y chromosome.

The IOC said that athletes will be screened through their saliva, a cheek swab, or a blood sample, and based on those results, “no athlete with an SRY-positive screen is eligible for competition in the female category at an IOC event.”

“As a former athlete, I passionately believe in the rights of all Olympians to take part in fair competition,” IOC President Kirsty Coventry said in the statement. “The policy that we have announced is based on science and has been led by medical experts.”

“At the Olympic Games, even the smallest margins can be the difference between victory and defeat,” she continued. “So, it is absolutely clear that it would not be fair for biological males to compete in the female category. In addition, in some sports it would simply not be safe.”

“Every athlete must be treated with dignity and respect, and athletes will need to be screened only once in their lifetime. There must be clear education around the process and counselling available, alongside expert medical advice,” Coventry added.

“With the rare exception of athletes with a diagnosis of Complete Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome (CAIS) or other rare differences/disorders in sex development (DSDs) who do not benefit from the anabolic and/or performance-enhancing effects of testosterone, no athlete with an SRY-positive screen is eligible for competition in the female category at an IOC event,” the committee said.

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