The state of Colorado has long been known for its natural beauty. From the towering Rocky Mountains to the prairies and flatlands, Colorado’s landscapes beautifully display God’s power in creation.
Unfortunately, Colorado has also come to be known for something much more nefarious in recent years: repeated religious discrimination.
Government officials have attempted to use a law called the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act (CADA) to restrict the rights of artists like Jack Phillips and Lorie Smith. And even though both Jack and Lorie have prevailed against this discrimination, Colorado has refused to stop.
Now, a recent amendment to CADA is threatening a company’s ability to speak out about the dangers of allowing male athletes to compete against females.
Advocating for women and girls
Jennifer Sey is a national gymnastics champion, best-selling author, and award-winning documentary filmmaker. She also served as the chief marketing officer and brand president of Levi Strauss, one of the largest clothing companies in the world.
Jennifer has never been afraid to speak the truth, even when doing so may be uncomfortable. In 2008, she wrote the book Chalked Up to detail the abusive coaching practices she experienced in elite gymnastics. And in 2020, she produced a Netflix documentary exposing the USA Gymnastics sex abuse scandal.
During her time at Levi Strauss, Jennifer spoke out against COVID-related school closures on a national news program. She faced intense pushback and ultimately chose to leave Levi Strauss rather than stay silent about important issues.
In March 2024, Jennifer used the industry knowledge she had amassed to start her own apparel company called XX-XY Athletics in Denver. In addition to creating quality apparel, the company is dedicated to speaking the truth that men don’t belong in women’s sports.
But the state of Colorado recently amended CADA to include “chosen name” and “how an individual chooses to be addressed” in the definition of “gender expression”—a “protected class” under the law. The new version of the law threatens the ability of XX-XY Athletics to speak about protecting women’s sports.
Colorado law threatens to censor XX-XY Athletics
By founding XX-XY Athletics, Jennifer Sey wanted to create an apparel company known for advocating for female athletes. Even the company’s name refers to the male and female chromosomes and the fact that sex cannot be changed.
“Women deserve the opportunities that sports and single sex spaces provide,” XX-XY Athletics states on its website. “Sex matters. It is the single biggest determinant of athletic performance. It is unfair and dangerous to allow males (XY) to compete in girls and women’s (XX) sports.”
In support of this mission, the company has partnered with female athletes such as Riley Gaines and Sia Liilii, who have spoken out against males participating in women’s sports. And it has produced multiple advertisements about this issue.
In its advertisements, on its social media platforms, and on its website, XX-XY Athletics regularly refers to male athletes using male pronouns and the names they were given at birth, even if they identify as female. For XX-XY Athletics, to do otherwise would be to perpetuate the lie that men can become women.
But the recent changes to CADA require businesses such as XX-XY Athletics to address males who identify as female using feminine names and biologically inaccurate pronouns in communications and advertising.
By using vague and undefined terms such as “unwelcome,” the law gives Colorado officials the power to punish businesses including XX-XY Athletics for expressing the view that male athletes should not compete against females.
The law is so broad that it allows any person “claiming to be aggrieved by a discriminatory or an unfair practice” to file a discrimination complaint with the commission or even file a lawsuit in a Colorado district court. The law says “information from any source sufficient to suggest that a discriminatory or unfair practice has been or is being committed” is grounds to initiate a charge, meaning someone could bring a charge against XX-XY Athletics after simply reading its website.
If XX-XY Athletics continues to speak according to its beliefs, it could face cease-and-desist orders, expensive investigations, hearings, and civil and criminal penalties. So Alliance Defending Freedom filed a pre-enforcement lawsuit on the company’s behalf challenging the new law.
The First Amendment prohibits government officials from forcing individuals and businesses to express only the government’s preferred views on hotly debated issues like men competing in women’s sports. Colorado cannot force Jennifer Sey and XX-XY Athletics to choose between staying silent and speaking in violation of their beliefs.
XX-XY Athletics v. Sullivan
- May 16, 2025: Colorado enacted a new law that amends the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act to include “chosen name” and “how an individual chooses to be addressed” within the definition of “gender expression.”
- May 27, 2025: ADF attorneys filed a lawsuit challenging the new law.
