A high school volleyball match in North Carolina has spiraled into a national controversy after one team chose to forfeit rather than compete against a trans girl. The decision, which school officials confirmed last week, has left one family devastated and has reignited heated debates about fairness, inclusion, and the treatment of transgender youth in sports. Now, the mother of the trans student at the center of it all is speaking publicly for the first time — and her words are breaking hearts.
The canceled match took place in Cherokee County, where the opposing team’s coach pulled his players from the court before the game began. According to NBC News, school officials defended the choice, saying they were “protecting their athletes.” But the mother of the 16-year-old trans girl says her daughter was left humiliated, isolated, and questioning whether she belongs anywhere at all.
“They didn’t just refuse to play volleyball. They told my daughter she’s not worthy of being seen as a girl,” the mother said. 💔— Equality Watch (@EqualityWatch) August 25, 2025
In an emotional interview, the mother explained that her daughter had spent years working up the courage to try out for the volleyball team. Sports, she said, were a lifeline — a way to feel included in a school environment where bullying was already a constant battle. “When they forfeited, she didn’t just lose a game. She lost her confidence,” the mother told The Guardian. “It felt like they were saying she wasn’t even human.”
Other parents have expressed outrage as well, with some accusing the forfeit decision of being motivated less by safety and more by politics. Civil rights groups quickly rallied behind the family, calling the incident a blatant act of discrimination. According to the ACLU’s statement, “No child should be denied the chance to participate in school sports because of who they are.”
Civil rights advocates: “This is not about volleyball. This is about dignity. A child was told her identity makes her unworthy.”— Justice Daily (@JusticeDaily) August 25, 2025
The backlash has spilled far beyond Cherokee County. State lawmakers have weighed in, some applauding the school for taking a stand, while others condemned the move as “cruel and unnecessary.” The New York Times coverage noted that the controversy comes amid a surge of state-level bans on transgender participation in school athletics, adding pressure to already vulnerable students.
For the girl at the center of the storm, the fallout has been overwhelming. Her mother said she cried for hours after the forfeit, asking why she wasn’t allowed to be treated like “just another girl on the team.” “She has fought so hard to live authentically,” the mother told reporters. “And in one night, they made her feel invisible again.”
“She just wanted to play volleyball with her friends. Instead, she was made into a spectacle.” — Parent of a teammate— Local Voices (@LocalVoices) August 25, 2025
Students at the school have since organized demonstrations of support, wearing rainbow pins and holding signs that read “Let Her Play.” According to CNN, dozens walked out of classes in protest of what they described as “state-sanctioned bullying.” On social media, the story has gone viral, with hashtags like #LetHerPlay trending across platforms and celebrities amplifying the family’s story.
Meanwhile, the Cherokee County school board has announced an internal review but has not indicated whether penalties will be issued to the team that forfeited. The uncertainty has left the girl’s future in limbo. “She’s asking me if she should even try to keep playing,” her mother admitted. “What do I tell her? That her dreams are smaller than her identity?”
Student protester: “This is about more than one game. It’s about whether trans kids can exist in our schools without being erased.”— Youth for Equality (@YFE) August 25, 2025
The family has now retained legal counsel, and civil rights attorneys are preparing to file a lawsuit. Advocacy groups say the case could become a major test of federal protections under Title IX, which bars sex-based discrimination in education. “If schools can discriminate this openly, every transgender child in America should be terrified,” one lawyer told reporters. The Department of Education has reportedly been contacted, though officials have not yet issued a public response.
For the girl’s mother, however, the legal fight is secondary to the human cost. “She is my child,” she said through tears. “She wanted nothing more than to be seen and to play. If we can’t give her that, what does that say about who we are as a society?”
