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On Friday night, October 23, 2026, during the Portland Thorns’ Fan Appreciation match against the North Carolina Courage at Providence Park, a group of roughly 25 “Save Women’s Sports” activists — mostly women — attended wearing XX-XY Athletics shirts.
The logo on these shirts in black with bold green letters has come to represent the movement for biological reality and the protection of women’s boundaries.
I’m proud to have created what is now quickly becoming the symbol of the resistance. To provide a symbol to rally around. A symbol for biological reality, women’s rights and clear boundaries for women’s privacy and safety and dignity. It really is the honor of my life to be a small part of this. To help amplify the message, give those unsure how to take a stand a simple way to do so, and to be a part of bringing people together to do it. Helping people find their people.
Unveiling the Save Women's Sports Banner
The group entered with the shirts concealed and, at the start of the second half, revealed them while unfurling a large “Save Women’s Sports” banner.
Political Messaging Throughout the Stadium
The stadium atmosphere already featured numerous trans flags, fans in “Protect Trans Kids” shirts that included dagger or knife imagery, and political signage such as “F ICE” and “F Trump.”
I was watching on television and could see the signs everywhere. Why these signs are everywhere at a women’s soccer game is a question that seems like it needs an answer. They aren’t at men’s pro soccer games. So why? Why are these supposed women’s soccer fans showing up like it’s a No Kings political rally?
The XX-XY group was clearly outnumbered and surrounded. They were a speck in a sea of pink and blue and middle fingers and f you’s and a vitriolic mob incited to violence. The bravery to stand in a stadium of 20,000 people and be the 25 holding the line cannot be overstated. I’m in awe of these women and men who did it.
A Double Standard for Political Expression
Given the sheer number of overtly political signs covering a wide range of political messaging and subjects, the Thorns cannot reasonably say that political slogans or signs or t-shirts aren’t permitted in the stadium. They were everywhere. But no one has ever accused that side of being logical or reasonable. Hypocrisy, force, censorship and yes, the call to violence has come to define this movement supposedly in defense of a vulnerable population.
Confrontations and Reported Physical Assaults
As the protect women’s sports group revealed their shirts and banner, they were quickly surrounded by an agitated mob. Accounts from participants and an on-site OutKick reporter describe verbal abuse, including repeated shouts of “F--- you, scum!” and chants of “Trans lives matter!”
Physical aggression followed: members of the group were struck with the poles of trans flags, which some assailants appeared to use as a screen to conceal the blows.
Julie Lane, a 57-year-old lesbian, was shoved by a male fan and tumbled over two rows of seats. The man later apologized to her and said he had just been following the crowd; Lane filed a police report.
A detransitioned man who goes by ApostateAri on X was prodded and hit with flag poles from the activists while he shouted: “I’m a castrated gay man, stop touching me with that flag.”
That one really breaks my heart.
The mob is a terrible thing.
Stadium Security Removes the XX-XY Group
Stadium security responded by forcibly removing the XX-XY group rather than the individuals who were assaulting them. Journalist and commentator Brandi Kruse had her right arm restrained behind her back by a security guard and was walked and then lifted out of the stands.
Kruse questioned why only her group was being ejected after being attacked. Other members were ushered out under similar pressure. Some refused and lay down at an exit, blocking it until police — called because of the obstruction — asked them to leave, which they then did.
Harassment Continues Outside Providence Park
Outside the stadium the group continued to face harassment; police briefly separated the opposing groups for public safety.
Credentialed OutKick reporter Matt Calkins, who was documenting the confrontation, was flipped off, called a Nazi, had his phone knocked from his hand, and had beer poured on him. While interviewing a participant, a security guard yanked his press pass from around his neck.
Police Reports and Department of Justice Review
Police reports were filed. The Portland Police Bureau stated that officers were not involved in the initial removals (presumably it was private security hired by the venue), that two potential crimes were reported (harassment and vandalism), that no injuries were reported or visible, and that no arrests were made; the incidents remain under investigation.
The U.S. Department of Justice has confirmed it is reviewing the matter. A spokesperson said the department is aware of the reports and will examine them thoroughly, noting that the described conduct appears to raise viewpoint-discrimination and First Amendment questions rather than sex-discrimination claims. Providence Park is owned by the City of Portland, a fact that has drawn attention in discussions of possible government involvement in the selective removal of one set of views while other political and ideological displays remained.
Free Speech and the Fight to Protect Women's Sports
In Portland, Oregon — still part of the United States as far as I understand it! — the episode illustrated a stark asymmetry: shirts and a banner affirming biological reality and advocating for the protection of women’s sports were treated as grounds for physical confrontation, violence and forced removal, while opposing flags, knife imagery, and profane political signs were not. Those were celebrated.
It’s not like this is new news, but the whole affair reflects the enforcement of a double standard in which free speech is permitted only for approved viewpoints.
The left, once vanguards for free speech, are the clear censors now. And they appear more than willing to deploy violence to do away with any speech they do not approve of.
Photos From Providence Park
