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The former female swimming captain of Roanoke College, Lily Mullens, remembers the first weekend in September of her junior season in 2023. She had just had her wisdom teeth, but something much more painful was to come.
This weekend, a team meeting was called to discuss a organic transgender swimmer who wanted to compete with the team. Mullens was in the meeting on Zoom.
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Captains of the second year teams, juniors and seniors Kate Pearson, Lily Mullens and Bailey Gallagher. (Outkick)
“The goal of the meeting was to bring us all with this individual to, in a way, to chop the feelings or the opinions that we had to individuals with administrators in the room,” said Mullens. “At one point, it was discussed that this individual, without the transition, had thought and had the planning of a suicide. So, it was something that was told to all.”
Mullens, who described himself as a religious person, said that she and the first reaction of his teammates were confusion.
“We all feel emotionally confused. We did not know what to do,” she said.
Mullens alleged that the athlete had even entered detail on the details of the alleged plan.
“The plan has in fact been detailed to us,” said Mullens. “There is a building on the campus they said they planned to go to the top and get started.”
According to Mullens, the school administrators of Reunion “said nothing” during and after the alleged suicidal suggestion of the athlete. Then, the team was invited to vote in a virtual survey to determine whether to let the trans athlete score with the women’s team until mid-season, by Mullens.
Mullens said that she and another teammate had voted no, while the rest of the team had all voted yes. Mullens said it was not the result she was waiting for before the meeting according to her conversation with her teammates.
“When we did this meeting, everyone agreed that it was not going to be one thing. So the immediate change that happened, I blame the emotional stress that it put us, to listen to mental health difficulties, and not know what to do and then to plan something as prejudicial than that and to devastate us, to tell us or not, and then to say, and then to say that, Mullens.
“I stayed on my arms and said” no “… but leaving this meeting and making me call me after my friends and telling me how, just not well.
Virginia’s prosecutor general, Jason Miyares, concluded an investigation into the situation involving Roanoke’s Trans swimmer, and the conclusions, published Monday by the complainants, addressed the alleged suicidal complaint, referring to the athlete as “swimmer A.”
“The swimmer then said to the team in detail of the regular contemplation of suicide before undergoing medical treatments and wanting to commit suicide each time I walk on the blocks to swim. Swimmer expressed the desire to climb to the top of the Trexler Hall, the highest building on the campus, and” Go Spat on concrete “,” Miyares “said.
The former Upenn swimmer is thinking about being teammates with Lia Thomas
Mullens allegedly alleged that she and the other swimmers had been informed that “none of mental health or health and advice had been informed of the situation” until the swimmers held a press conference to denounce the school on October 5, 2023.
“After our press conference, the head of health and student advice, as well as one of our campus advisers called a meeting with us,” said Mullens.
“We told them everything we experienced, and they, at the time, were disconcerted as to what we experienced … This first initial meeting that we had with the chief of consultant and one of our advisers, they had no idea. And when we told them, they were dismayed in our name.”
Later in the semester, after the swimmers held a press conference and returned the public situation, Mullens and her teammates hoped to take a travel class in the spring. She said she was looking for an environment change after the situation involving the swimming team.
Mullens and some of his teammates list Japan as the main option and thought they would be chosen for the course according to academic performance and parascolary activities.
However, she and other swimmers finally refused to several of their first options and some completely refused to travel. Mullens said that only two swimmers were selected for any course, and neither, and one of them was accepted before the press conference.
The former female swimmer of Roanoke Lily Mullens (Gracefulness of icons)
Mullens recalled an email she received when her mother asked why she was not accepted.
“When she sent an email, the answer she obtained was, I do not remember the exact wording … But basically, he said” not only is the professor is responsible for the student’s academics, but also their behavior “,” said Mullens. “I didn’t know what it means. I never had disciplinary measures for me.”
The Miyares’ investigation addressed the allegations according to which the swimmers were rejected travel courses as a means of reprisals for having spoken of the trans athlete.
“The proof elements have established a reasonable cause to believe that the policy of the respondent Roanoke College discriminated against the swimmers on the basis of sex, that the college has in fact refused them housing, advantages and privileges on the basis of sex and if the college rippled against them for their related protected activity,” said the conclusions of Miyares.
Miyares concluded that the college had denied the women, the advantages and privileges of women on the basis of sex, caused emotional, physical and dignitary women and violated Virginia Human Rights Act (VHRA).
Miyares also suggested that swimmers who have been deprived of discrimination are eligible to request financial damage because school policy has violated the VHRA, in accordance with the State Code.
Roanoke published a declaration denying the conclusions of Miyares on Monday.
“The college categorically denies the unfounded allegation that its administrators, its teachers, its staff, its coaches or its administrations have violated the human rights of any student or have repaled any way,” said part of the press release, adding that “the transgender student has never contributed to the women’s team”.
The press release continued: “The report alleys that our faculty retaliated against the members of the female swimming team by rejecting their requests for May. This accusation is manifestly false. Our faculty acted in good faith and followed our usual process concerning the selection of students for the courses in May.”
Mullens described the “lie” school response concerning the affirmations that the athlete “has never participated in the women’s team”.
“It is a lie. This individual was in the team. There is no other way to say it. You can say everything you want it to be a request. But it is a lie. This person was in our group discussions. This person was in our female combinations. This person was in training. This person was everything that was part of the team. It looks like a member of the team. [Frank] Shushok had the cheek to send this. The reading that made me so upset because it is just more proof of what we have experienced, “said Mullens.
Mullens’ lawyer, Bill Bock of the Independent Council on Female Sports (icons), condemned Roanoke for his declaration.
“Unfortunately, President Shushok’s letter does not deviate from the constant two -year model from Roanoke College to refuse misconduct, blame victims and discriminate women,” Bock said in a statement to PK Press Club Digital.
“Faced with the Virginia General Prosecutor’s Report, which describes solid evidence of freedom of freedom of female expression and female sporting opportunities are reduced, the response of the deaf of the Tone of President Shushok again the rights of the individual to form opinions and defend the rights of the free community”.
The members of the Roanoke College women’s swimming team attend a press conference. (Outkick)
Roanoke approached Mullens and Bock’s responses to his declaration in another statement provided to PK Press Club Digital.
“The Roanoke College stands next to our declaration. We will continue to cooperate with the Office of the Attorney General, as we have done from the start,” said the press release.
Roanoke did not approach the alleged suicidal complaint of the Trans athlete or the treatment presumed by the school of this situation in any of his declarations.
