Trans athlete AB Hernandez’s mum brushes off protests: ‘She’s doing nothing wrong’

High school athlete AB Hernandez is once again facing backlash for competing in female categories – but her mother is determined to push through it.

Hernandez first made headlines when President Trump targeted her in a post on Truth Social, after she qualified for the California Interscholastic Federation State Track and Field Champions.

In August 2025, her mother Nereyda spoke out, saying: “My daughter is not the problem … This has nothing to do with fairness in sport and everything to do with erasing transgender children.”

She has now been forced to defend her daughter again, after a protest was organised against California’s policies which permit trans athletes to compete in the category which aligns with their gender identity.

Nereyda told the LA Times: “I told AB, this is a [midterm] election year. They’re gonna hit us hard, because they’re using us for their campaigns.”

Trump’s executive order in January 2025 ruled transgender women should not be able to take part in women’s sports, and a number of sporting bodies have done so. However, California has resisted.

According to California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) policies, trans women can compete in women’s sports, in line with the state’s non-discrimination laws.

On top of that, trans girls do not “steal” wins from cisgender girls, as many critics complain. Instead, if a trans athlete receives a medal or qualifies for a higher round, the next in line athlete does too.

This has happened with AB twice, when she shared the first-place podium with another athlete last year. Nereyda said: “She’s not doing anything wrong.”

Despite CIF policies, though, protests continue.

Nereyda added: “It’s just the outsiders. They’re infiltrating, pretending they’re parents or they know people, but I’m the mom. I know who they are.”

AB is set to compete at the Southern Section finals on 16 May, after placing first in triple jump, long jump and in a five-way tie for high jump at last week’s CIF Southern Section Division 3 preliminaries.

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