A conservative parents’ rights group is urging Congress to investigate the YMCA over concerns it is using federal funds to promote radical gender-based policies that “endanger children, disregard parental rights, and violate federal law,” according to a Monday letter.
The letter, sent by Executive Director of the American Parents Coalition Alleigh Marré to Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, asks the House Subcommittee on Delivering Government Efficiency (which is chaired by Greene) “to investigate whether the YMCA is misusing public funds to implement policies that violate statutory protections and bypass parental consent.”
The APC previously filed a Title IX complaint on June 10 with the Department of Education, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, saying that the YMCA is nationally promoting “radical gender ideology” by “allowing biological males in girls’ locker rooms, bathrooms, and overnight cabins,” according to the July 14 letter.
The nonprofit Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA), which purportedly promotes “Christian principles,” according to its mission statement, serves 4 million children yearly and receives $600 million from government grants each year, obligating the organization under Title IX to not promote “gender ideology.“
Trump signed an executive order in January stating that “federal funds shall not be used to promote gender ideology” and that Title IX should be applied based on biological sex rather than “gender identity.”
“The Y does provide really great services and is a pillar in a lot of communities,” Marré told The Federalist. “All of that stands to change if they lose funding.”
A YMCA camp in Colorado sorted campers based on “gender identity,” allowing biological boys to sleep in girls’ cabins and ensuring their “chosen pronouns [were] respected and honored,” while withholding the information from parents, The Gazette reported in 2024.
“Parents will not be informed ahead of time if a boy is staying in a girls’ cabin,” Marré told The Federalist.
Earlier this year, Kansas City Police investigated an incident where a man claiming to be a woman allegedly exposed himself to a mother and her 7-year-old in the YMCA’s women’s locker room, National Review reported. In 2022, a mother and her daughter in Ohio also allegedly encountered a naked man in the YMCA women’s locker facility, Independent Women reported.
The YMCA removed the web pages showing gender ideology policies after the APC pushed back against the ideology, the Daily Caller reported.
The nonprofit also took down or restricted access to pages like “Affirming LGBTQ+ Communities with Pride,” posted in 2022, that shared the importance of “pride” and “How to Create a Safe Space for LGBTQ+ Campers,” posted in 2017, that says the YMCA “believe[s] that in a diverse world, we are strnger [sic] when we are inclusive and our doors are open to all — this includes LGBTQ+-identified individuals and communities.”
In a statement to Catholic News Agency (CNA), a spokesman for the YMCA said the 2017 post was a “blog” that “had a number of ideas for camps that were interested in being more inclusive.”
“State laws about transgender inclusion in gendered spaces remain an ever-evolving topic,” the spokesman told CNA. “Considering this, Y-USA advocates for the personal safety and privacy of all members and participants.”
“Our letter highlights the urgent need for an investigation into the YMCA’s federal funding since the organization continues to allow for radical gender policies that violate Title IX,” Marré said in a statement. “The YMCA needs to be held accountable for these actions not only to prevent harm to girls, but also to guard against the misuse of taxpayer funds.”
The YMCA did not respond to The Federalist’s request to comment.
Abigail Nichols is a correspondent for The Federalist. She was previously the opinion editor for the University of South Florida’s student newspaper, The Oracle. She is now working as the business manager at the University of North Florida’s student-run media outlet, Spinnaker Media, while obtaining a Master’s Degree in Social work.
