内容摘要：U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has applauded Utah for being the first state to enact a ban and said he plans to direct the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to

U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has applauded Utah for being the first state to enact a ban and said he plans to direct the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to

are likely and on Wednesday,for not complying with the government’s push to ban

in girls and women’s sports.The biggest takeaway is that the Trump administration has empowered the federal government to take aggressive steps to go after entities — be they a school or an athletic association and now a state — that do not comply. Federal funding, and potentially grants to educational programs, could be pulled.The threshold for noncompliance: Any entity that denies “female students an equal opportunity to participate in sports and athletic events by requiring them, in the women’s category, to compete with or against or to appear unclothed before males.”

The Education Department announced less than 24 hours after the order’s signing thatSan Jose State University, the University of Pennsylvania and the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association, all of which have had Title IX violations reported against them for allowing transgender athletes to compete. It also investigated Maine and last week referred the case to the Justice Department.

Every administration has the authority to issue its own interpretations of the landmark legislation best known for its role in ensuring gender equity in athletics and preventing sexual harassment on campuses.

Given the push-pull of how recent presidencies view Title IX, it has created a whiplash effect.In 2021, Rodriguez established a partnership between the Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar and CNAG, the National Center for Genomic Analysis in Barcelona. Rodriguez collects patients’ blood samples and delivers the extracted DNA to Barcelona, where scientists sequence it, storing the answers it holds in a large database. Almost 1,300 participants—patients and families—have enrolled in his study of rare disease in West Africa.

Rare disease researcher Pedro Rodriguez, left, examines Ibrahima Ndiaye, 8, in Dakar, Senegal, Friday, Jan. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Annika Hammerschlag)Rare disease researcher Pedro Rodriguez, left, examines Ibrahima Ndiaye, 8, in Dakar, Senegal, Friday, Jan. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Annika Hammerschlag)

In the Gambia, Fatou Samba’s sons Adama, 8, and Gibriel, 4, like to play soccer and feed the sheep in their backyard. On a recent afternoon, they took turns playing with a toy airplane and a globe. Adama, who hopes to be a pilot, pointed to where he wanted to go: the U.S. Outside, he started to climb a pile of bicycles propped up against the wall, and Gibriel followed.“We’re climbing Mount Everest,” Adama said.