"Big win for free speech!!" - Riley Gaines expresses delight after winning legal battle against University of New Mexico for viewpoint discrimination

By Animesh Pandey

Modified Oct 03, 2024 03:54 GMT

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Former NCAA swimmer-turned-social activist Riley Gaines has won a legal battle against the University of New Mexico. Gaines was invited to the university to lecture on the gender ideology movement, for which she was charged an exorbitant amount, compared to the speakers with opposing viewpoints.

The 24-year-old activist, who sued the University of Mexico for the same, took to her social media account to express her thoughts about the experience and her 'temporary' victory against the university.

The former swimmer captioned the post on her X account as:

"Big win for free speech!!!!! We sued University of New Mexico for viewpoint discrimination, and we've temporarily won. Onward!"

In the video attached to the post, Riley Gaines explained the kind of discrimination she had to face at the University of Mexico. She said:

"A major win for the free speech, especially for the conservative voices. Last year, the University of New Mexico invited me to speak on the college campus about the gender ideology movement. Naturally, in an attempt to not get me to come to the college, the university charged me almost $10000 as security fees. I kind of just complied because I thought this was normal but I was wrong.”

“.....I realized that this is a tactic that a lot of universities do to conservative voices. The same hefty fees was not applied to the speakers who had opposing viewpoints to me. A few weeks after, UNM brought a bunch of drag queens, and guess how much they paid in security fees. That’s right, zero dollars", Gaines added.

The American activist further reported that the courts issued a preliminary injunction, which restrains the University of New Mexico from collecting the security money from Gaines as demanded.

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Riley Gaines on the campaign against San Jose State University women's volleyball team

Riley Gaines expresses her views on the San Jose State University controversy [Image for Representational Purposes] [Image Source: Getty]

Riley Gaines has supported the University of Utah's decision to forfeit their match against the San Jose State University. The University of Utah refused to participate in their match against the San Jose State University, scheduled on October 23.

The American activist took to her social media account to express her happiness over this decision. She wrote on her X account:

"This kind of unity is what I (and many others who have worked far longer than me) have been pushing for over the past two years.The gender ideology house of cards is crumbling, and it's a glorious sight."

For the unversed, San Jose State University has been subject to criticism for continuing with Blaire Fleming, who is reportedly a transgender woman. When San Jose State University won their match against Fresno State, Gaines questioned their victory by writing on her X account:

"It's probably not overly difficult to be 9-0 when you have a man on your team lol"

Following the allegedly controversial victory against Fresno State, San Jose State University is facing boycotts from several educational institutions. Utah State University has joined the league of Boise State University and the University of Wyoming, who have forfeited their matches against the San Jose State University.

Riley Gaines had come into the limelight for the first time when she raised her voice against the participation of transgender female swimmer Lia Thomas, who had defeated Gaines in the 200-yard freestyle race at the 2022 NCAA Division I Championships.

The then-22-year-old swimmer gained success when the world body for international swimming, the World Aquatics, effectively banned transgender females, including Lia Thomas, for life from participating in elite women's swimming events. Thomas appealed against this decision but eventually lost the legal battle in 2024 when the Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld the decision made by World Aquatics.