In the interest of preserving a supportive, grassroots community and sport, and in the interest of respecting the privacy and dignity of every individual who participates or wishes to participate in roller derby, MRD has moved to create, pass, and now implement a non-discrimination policy that is more open and inclusive.

With thanks to the league working group that laid the initial groundwork for this policy, as well as every league member who participated in a healthy dialogue about the change, and with enormous gratitude to everyone who has paved the way for transgender, genderqueer, agender, gender non-conforming, etc. athletes worldwide. MRD would also like to specifically thank Gabriel Javier, director of the UW LGBT Campus Center for his help with this process.

​Our new policy is as follows: 

“MRD, pursuant to its mission of promoting women's roller derby, does not and will not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of its activities or operations. MRD does not and will not differentiate between members who identify as female and those who identify as a non-binary gender (including but not limited to genderqueer, transmasculine, transfeminine, and agender) and does not and will not set minimum standards of femininity for its membership or interfere with the privacy of its members for the purposes of league eligibility. These activities include, but are not limited to, draft/home team skater eligibility, membership eligibility, disbursement of resources, and eligibility for office. MRD is committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for all skaters, officials, volunteers, and fans.”

For further reading on the subject, please see the following resources, which were invaluable in our process of creating and implementing this policy:

• The Trans, Gender Non-Conforming, and Intersex Athlete’s Network
• MRDA Non-Discrimination Policy
• You Can Play Project
• Trans* Athlete