Boston Globe Falsely Prints Headline Calling Olympic Boxer Imane Khelif Transgender
The paper, which claimed that Algerian cisgender boxer Imane Khelif, adds fuel to an already raging fire over womanhood and boxing.
Over the last week, conservative influencer accounts have ignited a firestorm over cisgender boxer Imane Khelif, alleging that she is actually a “man” and suggesting she might be transgender. This is despite officials confirming that Khelif was assigned female at birth and has competed as a woman her entire life. The controversy has led to statements from Donald Trump, J.D. Vance, and anti-transgender influencers, who are using the boxer’s participation to target transgender athletes. Now, the Boston Globe, a major American paper, has published and circulated into print the false claim that Khelif is transgender.
The title reads, “Transgender Boxer Advances.” The headline was placed on an AP article written by sports journalist Greg Beachem, who asserts, “That's not my headline. That word isn't in my story. My stories are syndicated worldwide, and customers are allowed to write their own headlines.” The use of alternate headlines is a common practice for wire services. The word “transgender” does not appear once in the story, which was printed on August 2, 2024.
There is no evidence that Khelif is a transgender woman. Although transgender women are allowed to compete in the Olympics, there are no openly transgender women competing this year. Meanwhile, International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach has confirmed that Khelif is a cisgender boxer, calling disinformation about her gender “totally unacceptable.” Khelif’s family shared pictures of her as a child, as well as identity documents showing her assigned sex at birth. Notably, gender transition is criminalized in Algeria, making it extremely unlikely that transgender people would be allowed to transition in the country.
The original claim about Khelif’s sex eligibility arose when the scandal-plagued International Boxing Association (IBA) ruled her out of competition, alleging she failed an unspecified gender test after defeating an undefeated Russian boxer. Notably, the IBA is presided over by Umar Kremlev of Russia, an associate of President Putin. In 2023, the International Olympic Committee voted to derecognize the IBA due to concerns about corruption, governance, and judging controversies.
According to Kremlev, Khelif was disqualified from the IBA for having “XY chromosomes.” However, no such results have been publicly presented. Many cisgender women have XY chromosomes without knowing it, and some have even given birth. In 1996, chromosomal testing was used on all female Olympic athletes, only to discover that eight women had XY chromosomes without knowing it. Chromosomal sex testing was subsequently discontinued.
Though Khelif is not transgender, leading anti-trans influencers, Republican officials, and candidates for office have used her participation to target transgender people. Former President Donald Trump stated in response to Khelif, “I WILL KEEP MEN OUT OF WOMEN’S SPORTS!” His vice presidential candidate, J.D. Vance, blamed Kamala Harris and falsely called Khelif “a man.” Others, such as Elon Musk, Riley Gaines, and J.K. Rowling chimed in similarly.
As for Khelif, she is not backing down. On Saturday, she won her match against Hungarian boxer Anna Luca Hamori to cheers from the audience. Afterward, she told reporters, “I want to tell the entire world that I am a female, and I will remain a female…I dedicate this medal to the world, and to all the Arabs, and I tell you, ‘Long live Algeria!’”
Update: The paper has issued a correction and apologized.
“A significant error was made in a headline on a story in Friday’s print sports section about Algerian boxer Imane Khelif incorrectly describing her as transgender. She is not. Additionally, our initial correction of this error neglected to note that she was born female. We recognize the magnitude of this mistake and have corrected it in the epaper, the electronic version of the printed Globe. This editing lapse is regretful and unacceptable and we apologize to Khelif, to Associated Press writer Greg Beacham, and to you, our readers.”
The paper has issued an apology and correction.
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/08/03/sports/editors-note/
"A significant error was made in a headline on a story in Friday’s print sports section about Algerian boxer Imane Khelif incorrectly describing her as transgender. She is not. Additionally, our initial correction of this error neglected to note that she was born female. We recognize the magnitude of this mistake and have corrected it in the epaper, the electronic version of the printed Globe. This editing lapse is regretful and unacceptable and we apologize to Khelif, to Associated Press writer Greg Beacham, and to you, our readers."
Not enough news outlets are talking about the racism involved in the complaint against Khelif. White cis womanhood is socially constructed to make women of color "unfeminine" by comparison. From there it's a short step to accusing them of being men in disguise. A woman of color who defeated a white woman can't possibly have done it fairly, according to them.