Alabama
Alabama LGBTQ advocates react to Trump’s inaugural comments on gender: ‘Benefits no one’
Gay and transgender rights advocates in Alabama and beyond are gearing up for more attacks on LGBTQ rights after newly sworn-in President Donald Trump vowed that under U.S. policy there are “only two genders.”
“We take the remark to be a denial of all trans folks’ lived experiences, especially within the context of expected executive actions,” the Alabama Transgender Rights Action Coalition, said in an email to AL.com. “Science and medicine affirm the existence of a whole spectrum of gender that includes cisgender and transgender people alike. The administration’s stance on this benefits no one, and contradicts widely accepted medical best practice.”
Trump is expected to sign an executive action restricting the government’s definition of gender and sex.
“As of today, it will henceforth be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female,” Trump said Monday during his inaugural address, to loud applause.
U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., praised Trump’s comments.
“Thank you, Mr. President, for recognizing that there are 2 genders: male and female,” Tuberville said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “Now, we need to pass my bill to get men OUT of women’s sports.”
Tuberville reintroduced the bill that would bar transgender athletes from women’s sports earlier this week with numerous co-sponsors, including Alabama’s junior Republican, U.S. Sen. Katie Britt.
The Alabama coalition for transgender rights condemned Tuberville’s remarks.
“Transgender people (including nonbinary folks) exist in Alabama, and many are born here — and we just want to be free to participate in society like everyone else,” the advocacy group said in an email to AL.com. “In the coming years, some politicians will continue to proclaim falsehoods in an effort to distract from issues that they can’t solve without upsetting the interests that fund them. Alabama’s working-class people aren’t helped by the introduction of anti-trans policy, by a rejection of science, or by the embrace of anti-intellectualism.”
An incoming White House official told reporters that Trump will sign an executive action on Monday dictating that the policy of the U.S. is that there are two biologically distinct sexes: male and female, according to NPR.
The sexes are “not changeable,” according to the official, who spoke on background to reporters. The change in definition would apply to documents like passports, visas, and employee records.
Taxpayer funds would not be allowed to be used for “transition services,” according to the report from NPR.
But transgender rights advocates urged caution.
“Today, the Trump Administration is expected to release a barrage of executive actions taking aim at the LGBTQ+ community instead of uniting our country and prioritizing the pressing issues the American people are facing,” said Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, in an email to AL.com. “But make no mistake: these actions will not take effect immediately.”
Robinson said the actions “serve no purpose” other than hurting LGBTQ+ families and communities.
She said the Trump administration “is trying to divide our communities in the hope that we forget what makes us strong.”
“But we refuse to back down or be intimidated.”
Trump is expected to sign numerous executive actions Monday, primarily related to immigration.
Alabama
University of Alabama police officer's family leans on law enforcement community after his death
Alabama
New Alabama women’s basketball coach Pauline Love credits late mentor for coaching career
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (WBRC) – Pauline Love, the new head coach of the Alabama women’s basketball team, says her late college coach, Joye Lee-McNelis, is the reason she got into coaching.
Love played for Lee-McNelis at Southern Miss, describing her as a second mother. Lee-McNelis passed away last summer after a long battle with breast cancer.
A relationship that changed her path
Love said she once told Lee-McNelis she would never go into coaching, a conversation the two laughed about often.
“I used to tell her all the time, I would never do this. I would never put up with somebody like me or I would never work for somebody like her. I was like coach, you’re crazy. We used to laugh about it all the time and she was like you’ll see one day, you’ll see,” Love said.
Love had planned to work in the tech industry. Instead, she has spent 15 years in coaching.
“She pretty much paved the way for me. There’s no way I’d be sitting here if it wasn’t for her,” Love said.
High expectations at Alabama
Love returns to Tuscaloosa after previously serving as an assistant at Alabama. She was introduced as head coach in April, and was brought to tears when she mentioned Lee-McNelis during that introduction.
Her goals for the program are clear.
“I’m going to have a passion about it. I want to bring a Final Four to the University of Alabama and make Tuscaloosa proud,” Love said.
This year’s roster includes Spring Garden’s Ace Austin, back for her sophomore season.
Love said she wants her players to know that difficult times are part of the process.
“I can say for them, I’ve been there. I’ve done it. Just learn how to figure out and fight through hard things. You gotta do something hard and fight through it and I promise you it’s rewarding at the end of it,” Love said.
Love said she also wants to be a source of support for her players off the court, the same way Lee-McNelis was for her.
“I know we always get caught up in the money part of it, but I got a group of girls that doesn’t care about that. They want to care about making the fans happy and giving them something good to watch,” Love said.
Get news alerts in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store or subscribe to our email newsletter here.
Copyright 2026 WBRC. All rights reserved.
Alabama
Alabama football fans invited to pep rally at River Market
Alabama football fans are invited to a preseason pep rally Aug. 4 at the Tuscaloosa River Market.
The pep rally is part of the annual fall kickoff event hosted by the Tuscaloosa County chapter of the University of Alabama National Alumni Association.
The family friendly event will begin at 5:30 p.m. at the River Market, 1900 Jack Warner Parkway. Tickets, which include a barbecue dinner, cost $30 for adults and $15 for children ages 8 to 12. Children 7 years old and younger will be admitted for free.
The pep rally will feature live entertainment, a silent auction and a range of family-friendly activities. There will also be a cash bar with wine and beer.
Tickets can be purchased on the chapter’s website, tuscaloosacountyuaalumni.com. Membership in the local alumni chapter is not required for attendance.
University of Alabama President Peter Mohler and UA baseball coach Rob Vaughn will be part of the festivities.
Mohler began his duties as UA president on July 21, 2025.
Before being named UA president, Mohler spent nearly 15 years at Ohio State University, where he held senior leadership roles overseeing research, innovation and economic development. He also served as OSU’s acting president, providing leadership during a pivotal period for one of the nation’s largest public universities.
Mohler earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from Wake Forest University and a PhD in cell and molecular physiology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at Duke University Medical Center before joining the faculty at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
Vaughn has been UA’s head baseball coach for three years, leading the Crimson Tide to the College Baseball World Series in 2026.
The Humble, Texas, native served as head baseball coach at Maryland for five seasons before coming to Tuscaloosa.
Vaughn played collegiate baseball at Kansas State, where his position was catcher.
Alabama begins the 2026 football season on Sept. 5 with a home game against the East Carolina Pirates. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
Other Alabama home games include Florida State on Sept. 19, South Carolina on Sept. 26, Georgia on Oct. 10, Texas A&M on Oct. 24, Chattanooga on Nov. 21 and Auburn on Nov. 28.
Reach Ken Roberts at ken.roberts@tuscaloosanews.com. To support his work, please subscribe to The Tuscaloosa News.
-
Politics5 minutes agoWATCH: Trump’s Energy chief reveals what escalating Iran tensions could mean for gas prices
-
Health12 minutes agoCoffee may have powerful effect on liver health, major study suggests
-
Sports15 minutes agoOba Femi vs Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam is a ‘generational matchup,’ WWE legend JBL says
-
Business27 minutes agoBillionaire exodus? California drew 10 times more venture capital than any other state this year
-
Entertainment30 minutes agoDisney Channel maximalism to pop-star glam: What fans wore to Hilary Duff’s L.A. show
-
Lifestyle35 minutes agoL.A. Affairs: It’s hot when a man drives to me. But would this new guy make the trek from the Valley?
-
Politics42 minutes ago
Black mold and $1 wages: Settlement forces immigrant detention centers to protect workers
-
Science45 minutes agoTrump administration seeks to limit federal funding that doesn’t ‘advance’ presidential policies