Midwest LGBTQ+ Community Protests Event Headlined by Surfer Bethany Hamilton

Kauai's Bethany Hamilton is a surfer, author, mother, and shark attack survivor.

She recently gave birth to her fourth child, competed in the Vans Pipe Masters, and was invited to attend the Oshkosh Women's Fund's Annual Power of the Purse event as the keynote speaker in Wisconsin.

But in light of Hamilton's stance on transgender athletes, the event's been met with backlash as community members demand that she be replaced.

WLUK-TV posted the story above today, captioning it:

"The Oshkosh Women's Fund's Annual Power of the Purse event is causing controversy in the community this year after debate surrounding the event's chosen keynote speaker."

The controversy stems from Hamilton's early 2023 announcement that she would officially withdraw from future World Surf League competitions in response to its policy on allowing transgender athletes to compete.

In a letter obtained by WLUK-TV, members and allies of Oshkosh’s LGBTQ+community retaliated against the Fund's decision to select Hamilton as the keynote speaker. In the lengthy letter, protesters explained their decision to boycott Hamilton.

While the Fund's mission is to "improve the lives of women, girls, and all members" of its community, the letter says Hamilton's views do not.

At the end of the first page, the letter says:

"The Oshkosh Area Women’s Fund’s decision to host Bethany Hamilton as a keynote speaker not only contradicts their mission statement, it undermines their community partnership initiatives toward ending isolation and loneliness, promoting youth mental and physical health, and supporting parents[7]. It also creates and enhances a direct platform for amplifying anti-transgender bigotry in our own backyard."

Further in, it reads:

"We all look forward to the day we can celebrate, positively amplify, and support this event. Once the Women’s Fund has removed and replaced Bethany Hamilton as keynote speaker for this and any future events and issued a public statement of apology to the LGBTQ+ community, we stand ready to accept that apology, end our objections, and extend our sincere wishes for their and your continued success."

For more info, watch the news segment or read the full story here.

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