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Former Minnesota Vikings captain Jack Brewer says he feels his family, figuratively, is being “held hostage” by the North Star State’s Democratic policymakers who continue to enable transgender athletes in girls’ sports.
The state did not comply with the Trump administration’s Friday deadline to ban trans athletes from girls’ sports. Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison cited the current government shutdown in a letter to the Departments of Education and Health and Human Services, saying he has no “substantive response” to the Title IX deadline.
Brewer, who also served as captain for the University of Minnesota’s football team, has family and young relatives living in the state, and called its trans athlete policies “dark and demonic.”
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Jack Brewer, former safety for the Minnesota Vikings, speaks during a panel discussion at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Orlando, Florida, on Feb. 27, 2021. (Elijah Nouvelage/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“I still have plenty of family in Minnesota — nieces, nephews, cousins — and family members who coach high school sports there,” Brewer told Fox News Digital. “My family is being held hostage to these dark and demonic laws. I feel for my little nieces who have dreams of being athletes, for my young cousins playing high school sports, and for my former teammates who are now coaches and athletic directors across the state. These are my people — that’s why I speak out. I say things they can’t. It’s a sad reality that they’re being forced to raise their children around this sickness.”
The Trump administration determined at the end of September that Minnesota policies violated Title IX, citing a controversy from the spring that saw a transgender softball pitcher lead a girls’ high school team to a state title.
The findings also cited instances of trans athletes competing in girls’ Alpine and Nordic skiing, lacrosse, track and field, and volleyball in Minnesota.
The U.S. Department of Justice has already filed lawsuits against educational agencies in Maine and California for similar violations. A DOJ referral for Minnesota is now likely when the government re-opens.
“President Trump is absolutely right to demand that men stay out of women’s sports,” Brewer said. “When Congress is back in session, he should cut all federal funding to states that continue this insanity. Minnesota has become the laughingstock of America — the embarrassment of our nation.”
Ellison’s response to the ultimatum comes despite the hundreds of Minnesota school board members who penned an open letter urging the state to comply with President Donald Trump’s executive order and change its policies to keep males out of girls’ sports. As of Tuesday afternoon, 280 school board members across 113 school districts in the state have signed the letter, citing concerns for girls’ privacy and safety, as well as potential federal funding cuts in response to the state’s noncompliance.
Brewer called out Ellison and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz for not adhering to the wishes of those school board members.
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“You have hundreds of school board members who have stood against this, yet a governor and an attorney general with that much control are forcing their leftist, satanic ideals on people who want nothing to do with it,” Brewer said. “The world is watching as Minnesota has become the epicenter of this darkness — the devil’s den. Something needs to change, and the people of Minnesota need to wake up.”
Brewer also cited his Christian beliefs for his stance on the issue.
“The Bible talks about this — Jesus said it’s better to have a millstone tied around your neck and be cast into the sea than to harm one of His little ones,” he said. “Our nation was founded as a Christian nation — not one that appeases or promotes sexual immorality. We are destroying the souls of our children.”
Ellison has responded to school board members urging the state to keep biological males out of girls’ sports by saying the issue “doesn’t harm anyone.”
“Letting the very small number of transgender students in Minnesota play on their school sports teams doesn’t harm anyone, but segregating them does,” part of Ellison’s statement read.
“I too am concerned about the Trump Administration’s threats to cut education funding for kids across Minnesota, but this matter is before the court right now. The federal government’s threats violate the U.S. Constitution, Minnesota law, and Title IX itself. I’m fighting to prevent these harmful cuts, stop the Administration’s bullying of transgender kids who just want to live their lives in peace, and protect the rights and freedoms of all our students in Minnesota.”
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Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison arrives to speak at the Democratic National Convention on Aug. 21, 2024, in Chicago. (Getty Images)
Ellison has already filed his own lawsuit against Trump and the DOJ for trying to enforce its policies to protect girls’ sports in Minnesota. He has also bragged about “suing them first” over the issue.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Ellison and Walz’s office for a response to Brewer’s comments.
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