Woman faces legal action over criticisms of transgender athlete in women's football league

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• By Avi Yemini

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Australian woman Kirralie Smith, has been reported to the police after making social media posts about Riley Dennis, a male who identifies as transgender and controversially participates in a women’s football league.

New South Wales Police issued Smith with an Apprehended Violence Order (AVO) in late March, requiring her not to discuss or approach Dennis, despite living more than 300kms away. The AVO will remain in place until a court hearing later this month.

Smith, a spokeswoman for Binary Australia, an organisation fighting against gender ideology, has been a strong critic of gender self-identification in sports.

Earlier this year, she led an email campaign that generated over 12,000 complaints to Football New South Wales (FNSW) authorities, primarily about Dennis, who allegedly injured female players during a match in March.

In an interview with Reduxx, Smith stated that she believes the AVO was a response to her social media posts specifically discussing Dennis' involvement in women's competitions.

Due to the AVO's prohibitions against electronic harassment, her statements on social media have been legally scrutinised and, in some cases, censored by the Australian government's "cyber abuse" division.

In February, Smith's public Facebook page was removed at the request of Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant.

The page, established in 2016, had over 47,000 followers and was used by Smith to advocate for the rights of women and girls affected by gender identity policies.

Despite facing potential criminal charges if the court justifies the AVO, Smith has received significant support.

“One good thing to come out of these difficulties is the way it draws women together. We are women and I now get to call some friends that I otherwise wouldn’t. Beauty from ashes,” she said.

The eSafety Commissioner has reportedly also targeted other platforms, including Reduxx, and advised them to censor or delete articles naming Dennis as the subject of complaints for allegedly injuring female players in a match.

Dennis was previously a popular trans activist YouTuber, facing backlash for controversial videos, including one that labeled "genital preferences" as transphobic.

The eSafety Commissioner has also sent threatening notices to concerned citizens and parents discussing FNSW's gender self-identification policy on social media.

Football Australia recently announced a "transgender and gender-diverse high performance inclusion policy" in response to parents' demands to ban trans-identified males from women's matches.