Anti-trans protestors showed up at Diablo Valley College when the Santa Rosa women’s volleyball team played here on Sept. 26, reflecting a growing controversy that has surrounded a transgender student-athlete on the Santa Rosa team. 

“When you lose to a man, you feel awful, and I bet you these girls on the [Santa Rosa] team must feel awful when they win, because they could’ve won without a man,” said an anonymous protestor who attended the game. “It’s wrong for their self-esteem.” 

The person added, “[I’m] here to support these women [volleyball players] to win with grace and honor, [and] to lose with dignity.”  

But for many students who attended, the game was also an opportunity to voice their support for trans athletes. 

“I got to take action. I got to join the movement of efforts to protect these athletes’ rights,” said Quentin, a DVC student who was among a number of those supporting the trans athlete on the Santa Rosa team.

Rebecca Barrett, a Contra Costa Community College Governing Board member, likewise attended the game and voiced support for transgender student athletes.

“I think it’s important for Contra Costa that no matter who they are, all are athletes,” Barrett said.

This is only the latest case of anti-trans protests occurring on college campuses in connection with student athletes. Protesters across California have attended sports games in recent months, like the high school track and field state championships hosted by the California Interscholastic Federation in May, to oppose the inclusion of a trans woman student athlete attending the event.

Last November, a judge allowed a trans woman student athlete to continue playing on San Jose State University’s women’s volleyball team, after an anti-trans lawsuit was filed seeking to ban the student from playing. 

Similar suits have targeted the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for allowing trans athletes, specifically trans women, to continue playing on women’s teams in games associated with the NCAA.

Anti-trans protestors began appearing at away games played by the Santa Rosa women’s volleyball team this fall, due to a federal Title IX complaint over the trans woman student athlete. Protestors expressed concerns that a transgender athlete on the team was creating an imbalance in competition.

In response to the protestors, LGBTQ+ members living in the Pleasant Hill area, along with community members, staff and students from DVC, coordinated through posts on Facebook and Discord to show support for the Santa Rosa player at the DVC home game, where many held LGBTQ+ flags and signs. 

In a 2025 report, entitled “How Many Adults and Youth Identify as Transgender in the United States?” scholars Jody L. Herman and Andrew R. Flores found that 1 percent of the U.S. population identifies as transgender, with one-third of those identifying as trans women. 

In recent years, trans athletes, especially trans women, have seen an increase in bans and restrictions on participating in sports, from high school to the professional level. 

An executive order signed by President Donald Trump in February, “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” accelerated the trend by making it more difficult for trans women athletes to compete on women’s teams. 

The NCAA followed suit, changing its transgender athletes policy so that transgender athletes can no longer be included in sports games connected to the NCAA.

To meet students’ concerns, DVC offers mental health and community resources for students, especially people in the LGBTQ+ community. On the DVC Pleasant Hill campus, students seeking support can find the Community of Pride learning community in the Student Services Center, Room 210.

The Pride Student Association also offers a safe space for students. The club meets from 2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. every Wednesday at the Inclusivity and Wellness Center, located in Student Union Room 111 on the Pleasant Hill campus. There are also mental health services like TimelyCare and Crisis Drop-In available online.

The DVC San Ramon Campus hosts a LGBTQ+ group called the Kaleidoscope Club. The club will meet in the East Building, Room 174, where it will hold its first meeting from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Oct. 30.