Andraya Yearwood

Andraya Yearwood
Born (2001-08-15) August 15, 2001
Atlanta, Georgia
EducationCromwell High School (High School Diploma) North Carolina Central University (BA) Columbia University in the City of New York (MA)
OccupationScholar-Activist
Years active2017–present
Known forTransgender rights activism
Notable workChanging the Game (2019/2021), Joy Run (2020), Running While Black (2022), Queer Sports (2023), An Amefrican Historization of a Queer Afro-Brazilian Argot: Language, Non-normative Identity, and Intersectional Feminist Legacy (2025),
TelevisionThe Don Lemon Show (2022)
Political party
Democratic
AwardsNew York Athlete Ally Action Award (2019), Connecticut Sports Writers’ Alliance Bob Casey Courage Award (2019), North Carolina Central University Outstanding Graduating Senior Award (2024), Middlebury College Premio a la Estudiante Más Representativa del Nivel 4 (2024)
HonoursForeign Language and Area Studies Fellowship
Sports career
CountryUnited States
SportTrack and field

Andraya Yearwood (born August 15, 2001) is an American transgender student athlete from Connecticut. Yearwood began competing on a high school girls' team in early April 2017 and won first place in the girls 100- and 200-meter dashes.[1] Yearwood's second-place finish at the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC) 100-yard dash finals on June 4, 2017, behind another transgender student, gained international media attention.[2]

The decision of the State of Connecticut to allow Yearwood to compete on the women's team is a focus of debate surrounding Title IX and trans people. In 2018, writing on the subject of transgender people in sports, ESPN called Yearwood and a handful of other transgender athletes "focal points in a fight over the future of sports".[3] Yearwood has competed without hormones or puberty blockers, which, according to Vice Media, "could have contributed to an advantage". However, Vice Media also stated that schools requiring medical treatment for transgender athletes would create a barrier to entry due to the costs of treatment.[4][5]

Early Life and Background

Birth and Upbringing

Andraya Yearwood was born the summer of 2001 in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state) to parents Rahsaan Yearwood and Ngozi Nnaji.[6][7][8] She was delivered prematurely at 24 weeks gestation, weighing one pound twelve ounces, and required extensive medical intervention in her infancy.[9]

Her family relocated multiple times during her early childhood before establishing residence in Cromwell, Connecticut, where she attended grades 1-12 in the Cromwell Public School District.[10] As a child, Yearwood engaged in a wide range of sports, from acrobatics to ballet to American football, reflecting an early interest in athletic activities.[11]

In middle school, Yearwood informed her parents of her identification as female, receiving familial support focused on her overall well-being amid this disclosure.[12][13] Her parents prioritized her personal health and emotional needs over athletic pursuits during this period.[14]

Petitions

In June 2018, following the Connecticut State Open Track and Field Finals where Yearwood placed second in the 100-meter dash behind fellow transgender sprinter Terry Miller, the athletes became the focus of public pushback and localized petitions. The most prominent campaign was launched by Bianca Stanescu, the mother of a cisgender competitor who missed qualifying for the regional championships. Stanescu circulated physical and online petitions urging the state legislature and the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC) to alter its gender identity policies. The petition demanded that high school athletes compete according to their biological sex assigned at birth or undergo mandatory hormone therapy before participating. Proponents of the petitions argued that Yearwood and Miller held an unfair physiological advantage that compromised Title IX protections for cisgender women. This petition allowed Yearwood to speak on Good Morning America and address the issues that came with the petition and encourage other transgender girls to compete.[5]

The CIAC formally rejected the petitions, maintaining that its trans-inclusive athletic policy was explicitly designed to align with Connecticut state anti-discrimination laws protecting gender identity. Yearwood and her family strongly defended her right to participate, with Yearwood stating to national media platforms like ABC News (United States) that the backlash only motivated her to train harder. Backed by advocacy groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Athlete Ally, Yearwood continued her high school track career. However, the core arguments formulated during these 2018 grassroots petitions ultimately laid the groundwork for future legal escalation; the petitioning families partnered with the Alliance Defending Freedom to file a formal federal discrimination complaint, culminating in the landmark federal lawsuit Soule v. Connecticut Association of Schools.[15]

Soule et al v. CT Association of Schools et al

In February 2020, four cisgender female high school track athletes—Selina Soule, Chelsea Mitchell, Alanna Smith, and Ashley Nicoletti—and their families filed a federal lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut against the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC), several school districts, and the Connecticut State Board of Education, alleging violations of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.[16] The plaintiffs, represented by the conservative nonprofit organization, Alliance Defending Freedom[17], claimed that the CIAC's policy, which permitted students to compete in the gender category aligning with their gender identity, deprived them of fair athletic opportunities by allowing transgender femme-identified athletes compete in girls' sprint events.[18] Andraya Yearwood and Terry Miller, the two transgender female athletes named in the federal lawsuit, intervened as defendants alongside the ACLU, arguing that the policy enabled their inclusion consistent with Connecticut's anti-discrimination laws.[19]

The complaint highlighted specific instances where Yearwood's participation displaced female competitors; for example, in the 2019 State Open 100-meter dash, Yearwood placed first, preventing Soule from qualifying for regionals despite a strong performance that would have advanced her absent Yearwood's entry.[20] The lawsuit sought a preliminary injunction to bar Yearwood, Miller, and similarly situated athletes from competing in girls' events, emphasizing that Title IX protects sex-based categories in sports to ensure equal opportunities for females.[21]

In April 2021, District Judge Robert N. Chatigny denied the preliminary injunction, ruling that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate a likelihood of success on the merits or irreparable harm, partly crediting expert testimony from the defendants that any advantages were mitigated or not uniformly decisive.[22][23][24] In 2021, the Biden Administration withdrew former Attorney General William Barr’s support of the exclusion of Yearwood, reconsidering her right as a woman and her right to play women's sports.[25] The plaintiffs appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, which in December 2022 initially affirmed the denial via a panel decision, finding insufficient evidence of concrete injury for standing.[26][27] However, following an en banc rehearing petition, the full Second Circuit reversed in December 2023, holding that the plaintiffs had Article III standing due to traceable competitive harms, such as lost podium finishes and scholarships, and remanded the case for further proceedings on the merits.[28][29] Following the remand, U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny denied the defendants' motions to dismiss in November 2024, allowing the Title IX and equal protection claims to proceed on the merits.[30]

The case was subsequently reassigned to U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala.[31] In August 2025, the defendant school boards and athletic association sought a pause in proceedings, citing efficiency concerns after the Supreme Court of the United States granted certiorari to similar transgender athletic eligibility cases (Hecox and B.P.J.).[32] On August 28, 2025, Judge Nagala issued a partial stay that suspended depositions, expert witness discovery, and dispositive motion practice pending the Supreme Court's guidance on Title IX and equal protection frameworks.[33] The court exempted written discovery from the stay, allowing empirical fact-finding disputes to continue into 2026 under the representation of the Alliance Defending Freedom for the plaintiffs and the American Civil Liberties Union for the intervening defendants.[34]

Media and Public Profile

Changing the Game (2019/2021)

In 2019, Andraya Yearwood appeared in Changing the Game, a critically acclaimed sports documentary directed by Michael Barnett. It originally premiered at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival in New York City and was later released to a global audience on Hulu and Disney+ in June 2021, where it is permanently housed. The film offers an intimate, humanistic look into what has become a major civil rights conversation: transgender inclusion in high school sports. Rather than focusing purely on legal or political abstractions, the documentary centers on the personal lives, athletic journeys, and structural barriers faced by three trans youth athletes.[35] The documentary captures the emotional weight of Andraya's journey as she tries to balance normal teenage aspirations with the pressure of being a public face for civil rights litigation.

Barnett highlights the grueling physical effort, dedication, and immense passion these kids have for their sports. The documentary stresses that for these teens, sports are a vital outlet for mental health, community, and self-actualization. A recurring thread in the film is that the hostility rarely comes from fellow adolescent competitors; the bullying, protests, and media vitriol are almost exclusively driven by adults, talk-show hosts, and political figures. Ultimately, by shifting between Texas, Connecticut, and New Hampshire, Changing the Game underscores how vastly different a trans child's life can be depending purely on the state lines they reside within.[36]

The documentary earned widespread praise from critics for its deeply human, nuanced, and urgent exploration of a complex topic. Highly celebrated on the festival circuit, it won the coveted Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature at both Frameline Film Festival and Outfest. Praised by publications like The New York Times for its empathetic storytelling, the film later achieved mainstream industry recognition with a Critics' Choice Documentary Awards nomination for Best Sports Documentary and a nomination for the Peabody Awards.[37]

Joy Run (2020)

Directed by the celebrated transgender activist and filmmaker Tourmaline (activist), Joy Run is a stylized documentary short produced in collaboration with the fashion bodywear company Chromat and athletic brand Reebok. Created for and presented at New York Fashion Week, the film serves as a vibrant visual celebration of Black trans athletes. It specifically centers on Yearwood and Terry Miller, reframing their narratives away from political trauma to highlight the liberating power of movement, community bond, and the pure pleasure of running track.[38]

Running While Black (2022)

A three-part documentary project produced by Vice Media and Adidas that examines the intersection of systemic racism, sports culture, and running safety. Episode 2 features a dedicated profile of Yearwood. It showcases her athletic resilience and documents her ongoing perspective on why access to sports remains a fundamental human experience for marginalized youth.

Queer Sports (2023)

In 2023, Yearwood was featured in two episodes of the Vice TV weekly docuseries Queer Sports, hosted by Arielle Duhaime-Ross.[39] In Episode 3, titled "Trans Athletes Address the 'Debate'," she participated in a roundtable panel alongside Veronica Ivy, Cat Runner, and Frankie De La Cretaz to analyze the emotional tax and institutional policies affecting transgender competitors.[40] In a later episode focused on equality in women's sports, Yearwood was the subject of a one-on-one spotlight interview examining the intersection of identity, systemic media pressure, and her personal resilience as a Black trans athlete.

Education

Yearwood received recruitment interest from Harvard University, the University of Connecticut, Springfield College, and West Point to run track and field in the NCAA.[5] Beginning in the fall of 2020, she was a student at North Carolina Central University (NCCU), a Historically Black University (HBCU) in Durham, North Carolina.[41] During her undergraduate studies, Yearwood intentionally declined to participate in intercollegiate athletics to have the academic freedom necessary to pursue international study. In 2022, she completed the first semester of her junior year abroad at New York University Buenos Aires in Recoleta, Buenos Aires, Argentina.[42] While there, she worked with the Diáspora Africana de la Argentina (DIAFAR) on active popular dissemination centering the sociocultural, natural and political heritage of the Black Afro-Argentine diaspora under the direction of Federico Pita, Founder of DIAFAR and University of Buenos Aires politicist.[43] This intensive immersion program allowed her to deepen her fluency in Spanish and intercultural competence of the Afro-Argentine diaspora. The summer following her coursework in Argentina, Yearwood expanded her linguistic focus to Portuguese. She is only the second student from NCCU to be selected for the prestigious Critical Language Scholarship Program, a fully funded initiative sponsored by the United States Department of State aimed at mastering languages crucial to national security and global commerce. Through the CLS program, Yearwood underwent rigorous linguistic and cultural immersion in Brazil, which required adhering to a strict, native-only language policy.[44][45]

She graduated Magna cum Laude in the spring of 2024 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Spanish Language and Literature and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Interdisciplinary Studies with a concentration in race, gender, and class. She also earned two minors in political science and women's and gender studies.[46] The summer immediately following her college graduation, Andraya received the HBCU Scholarship to fully-fund her studies at the School of Spanish at the Middlebury College Language Schools in Middlebury, Vermont.[47] In September of that year, Andraya pursued a Master of Arts degree at the Institute of Latin American Studies at Columbia University in the City of New York as her alma mater's inaugural recipient of the Foreign Language and Area Studies fellowship in Portuguese funded by the United States Department of Education.[48] Her M.A. thesis, titled "'Samba’o na cara da sociedade': A Quare Linguistic Anthropological Account of Brazilian Portuguese," which applies quare theory to linguistic anthropological methodology to investigate how Afro-Brazilian LGBTQIA+ communities use pajubá—a traditional queer sociolect combining Portuguese with West African elements—to articulate Black queer identities and push back against systemic marginalization and national myths of an "Afro-paradise".[49] Her thesis, advised by João Nemi Neto and Gustavo Silva Azenha, is the first application of quare linguistic anthropological theory and method to a non-Anglophone language. Post-graduation from Columbia, Yearwood served as the Youth Advocacy Fellow with the New York Transgender Advocacy Group (NYTAG) in Manhattan's Flatiron District.

As of 2026, Andraya Yearwood is the assistant director of the Gender and Sexuality Resource Center at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado.

References

  1. ↑ Matthew Conyers (April 7, 2017). "At Cromwell High, Transgender Athlete Competes With Girls For First Time". Hartford Courant.
  2. ↑ Cam Smith (June 7, 2017). "Connecticut transgender sprinter Andraya Yearwood wins two state titles amidst controversy". USA Today High School Sports.
  3. ↑ Katie Barnes (May 29, 2018). "THEY ARE THE CHAMPIONS – In the face of fear and anger, two young transgender athletes fight to compete in the sports they love". ESPN.
  4. ↑ Katelyn Burns (July 28, 2017). "The Challenges Ahead for Transgender Athletes and Title IX Under Trump". Vice Sports.
  5. 1 2 3 Fader, Mirin. "Andraya Yearwood Knows She Has the Right to Compete". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2022-10-14.
  6. ↑ Hunter, Kenya (2022-04-07). "Andraya Yearwood Q&A". Capital B News - Atlanta. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  7. ↑ "Transgender track star teens cause controversy in Connecticut". ABC7 Chicago. 2018-06-22. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  8. ↑ www.espn.com https://www.espn.com/espnw/story/_/id/23644734/how-two-transgender-athletes-fighting-compete-sports-love. Retrieved 2026-08-31. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  9. ↑ Fader, Mirin. "Andraya Yearwood Knows She Has the Right to Compete". bleacherreport.com. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  10. ↑ Giardina, Henry (2023-05-25). "Andraya Yearwood Will Never Be Erased". INTO. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  11. ↑ Giardina, Henry (2023-05-25). "Andraya Yearwood Will Never Be Erased". INTO. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  12. ↑ Courant, Hartford (2017-04-07). "At Cromwell High, Transgender Athlete Competes With Girls For First Time". Hartford Courant. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  13. ↑ "Transgender track star teens cause controversy in Connecticut". ABC7 Chicago. 2018-06-22. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  14. ↑ "Transgender track star teens cause controversy in Connecticut". ABC7 Chicago. 2018-06-22. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  15. ↑ "Transgender track star teens cause controversy in Connecticut". ABC7 Chicago. 2018-06-22. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  16. ↑ "Soule v. Connecticut Association of Schools, Inc. 3:20-cv-00201 (D. Conn.) | Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse". clearinghouse.net. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  17. ↑ Eaton-Robb, Pat. "Girls sue to block participation of transgender athletes". ABC News. Retrieved 2020-02-15.
  18. ↑ "Soule ex rel. Stanescu v. Connecticut Association of Schools, Inc., No. 21-1365 (2d Cir. 2023)". Justia Law. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  19. ↑ "Soule et al v. CT Association of Schools et al". American Civil Liberties Union. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  20. ↑ "Soule v. Connecticut Association of Schools, Inc. 3:20-cv-00201 (D. Conn.) | Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse". clearinghouse.net. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  21. ↑ "Soule v. Connecticut Association of Schools, Inc. 3:20-cv-00201 (D. Conn.) | Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse". clearinghouse.net. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  22. ↑ Rondinone, Nicholas (2021-04-25). "Federal judge dismisses lawsuit seeking to bar transgender athletes from CT girls sports". Connecticut Post. Archived from the original on 2021-05-04. Retrieved 2021-05-04.
  23. ↑ "Soule v. Connecticut Association of Schools". adflegal.org. September 2020. Retrieved 2021-05-04.
  24. ↑ Brassil, Gillian R.; Longman, Jeré (2020-08-18). "Who Should Compete in Women's Sports? There Are 'Two Almost Irreconcilable Positions'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-10-14.
  25. ↑ "Biden Justice Dept. Quits federal lawsuit opposing trans athletes". 24 February 2021.
  26. ↑ "Soule v. Connecticut Association of Schools". Alliance Defending Freedom. 2020-09-01. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  27. ↑ "Female Athletes Make Their Case at the Second Circuit". National Review. 2023-06-06. Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  28. ↑ Walsh, Mark (2023-12-15). "Lawsuit Over a Transgender School Sports Policy Revived by Federal Appeals Court". Education Week. ISSN 0277-4232. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  29. ↑ "D. Conn. 3:20-cv-00201 Docket". Equality Case Files. Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  30. ↑ "GovInfo". www.govinfo.gov. Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  31. ↑ Machina®, Lex. "Trans Athlete Inclusion Case Paused Pending Justices' Ruling - Law360". www.law360.com. Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  32. ↑ Hanson, James (2026-07-07). "Tuesday Takeaways: The Supreme Court Has Spoken. What Does This Year's Term Mean for Educational Institutions? (Part 1)". ICS Lawyer. Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  33. ↑ "Soule v. Connecticut Association of Schools, Inc., 3:20-cv-00201 - CourtListener.com". CourtListener. Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  34. ↑ "Soule v. Connecticut Association of Schools, Inc. 3:20-cv-00201 (D. Conn.) | Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse". clearinghouse.net. Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  35. ↑ Heaney, Katie (2021-06-17). "'We Only Hear About Trans Athletes When They're Winning'". The Cut. Retrieved 2022-10-14.
  36. ↑ "Hulu Press". Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  37. ↑ "Changing the Game | International Documentary Association". www.documentary.org. 2021-09-27. Retrieved 2026-09-01.
  38. ↑ Ryan, Maggie (2020-09-17). ""I'm Capable of Anything": Chromat's "Joy Run" Fashion Week Film Celebrates Trans Athletes". Popsugar. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  39. ↑ VICE News (2023-06-15). The Next Fight Over Women's Equality In Sports | Queer Sports. Retrieved 2026-08-31 – via YouTube.
  40. ↑ VICE News (2023-05-25). Trans Athletes Address the “Debate” | Queer Sports. Retrieved 2026-08-31 – via YouTube.
  41. ↑ Felicien, Bria (2021-03-31). "CeCé Telfer, Andraya Yearwood & how to support Black trans sportswomen". The Black Sportswoman. Archived from the original on April 1, 2021. Retrieved 2021-06-19.
  42. ↑ "Her story became fuel for online outrage. How this CT transgender athlete stayed positive and moved on". Hartford Courant. 2026-07-21. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  43. ↑ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  44. ↑ "Her story became fuel for online outrage. How this CT transgender athlete stayed positive and moved on". Hartford Courant. 2026-07-21. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  45. ↑ "Spanish Immersion Ambassadors | Middlebury Language Schools". www.middlebury.edu. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  46. ↑ "Languages come Easy to Graduating Senior | North Carolina Central University". www.nccu.edu. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  47. ↑ "Spanish Immersion Ambassadors | Middlebury Language Schools". www.middlebury.edu. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  48. ↑ "Languages come Easy to Graduating Senior | North Carolina Central University". www.nccu.edu. Retrieved 2026-08-31.
  49. ↑ Yearwood, Andraya. "Samba'o na cara da sociedade: A Quare Linguistic Anthropological Account of Brazilian Portuguese". Columbia University. doi:10.7916/4NPS-EN34. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)

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