By Walt Heyer

Women’s basketball star Sophie Cunningham set off a maelstrom of controversy with her recent comment: “I want to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn’t have to go against biological men.”

Sports television personality Stephen Smith weighed in on the controversy and supported Cunningham’s comment, saying, “And when you have athletes from the WNBA saying that they’re looking out for girls because trans athletes would clearly have an unfair advantage over people born female, what’s the problem?” Smith continued, “… and for folks to act like it would be okay for them to participate in the WNBA is ridiculous. We’ve got to have common sense.”

Both Cunningham and Smith are correct. We’ve got to have common sense. Just because a man says he is a woman doesn’t make it true. The human body testifies to that fact. The 30 trillion cells of the human body are either male or female. No amount of hormones or number of surgeries can alter the body’s cells and systems to effect a change from one sex to the other.

Therefore, “transition” is pure fiction; it is not possible. Before the term “transgender” entered the culture, the term in use was “transvestite,” meaning a man who wore stereotypical women’s clothing and makeup and went out in public. The man was playing dress-up, and everyone knew it.

Similarly, the premise behind the slogan “‘Transgender’ women are women” (prevalent on LGBTQ protest signs) defies logic, common sense, and biological truth. Men cannot become women.

Unfortunately, women especially are falling for this lie. Some WNBA players and the players’ union have issued statements expressing they are okay with opening women’s basketball teams to men who claim to be women.

I’m trying to comprehend how in the world women are okay with this.

The Illusory Truth Effect

The field of psychology provides an answer. It’s called the Illusory Truth Effect, and it explains how misinformation, when repeated for years, becomes mistaken for truth.

Psychology Today says, “The Illusory Truth Effect is the tendency for any statement that is repeated frequently — whether it is factually true or not, whether it is even plausible or not — to acquire the ring of truth. Studies show that repetition increases the perception of validity…”

For centuries, this tool has been employed for political propaganda purposes and to foment discord and doubt. What I’ve observed in the 40 years since I fell for the “transgender” outrageous claims is that activists have used the Illusory Truth Effect with great effectiveness to persuade people that men can become women. They repeated the lies often enough, and now people believe they are true.

Men and Boys Have a Strength Advantage

Another lie is that men who identify as women should be allowed to compete in women’s sports because their low testosterone levels eliminate the strength advantage men have over women. But recent findings contradict that myth.

The 2019 study published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism explored the effects of “gender-affirming” treatment on muscle function, size, and composition during 12 months of therapy and found that men without testosterone generally maintain their male muscle strength, size, and composition.

The researchers called the changes in strength “modest” and concluded the “findings add new knowledge … which could be relevant when evaluating the transgender [sic] eligibility rules for athletic competitions.”

The Association of Ringside Physicians (ARP) agreed that men retain their strength and issued an emphatic statement against men who identify as women competing against women in athletic competition in combat sports. In their position statement, ARP says, “These differences [between the sexes] — both anatomic and physiologic — persist despite normalization of sex hormone levels and create disparities in competitive abilities that are not compatible with the spirit of fair competition.”

By ignoring the obvious differences and allowing men to participate, women’s sports organizations put female athletes in jeopardy. Unfortunately, female athletes like Payton McNabb — a former three-sport high school athlete from North Carolina who suffered a severe injury during a women’s volleyball match against a male athlete — pay the price.

Tell the Truth

The best disinfectant against the lies is to repeat the truth: Men cannot become women. No one “transitions.” “Transgender women” are not women. Men have an inherent physical advantage no matter their testosterone level, and men competing against women in sports isn’t fair or safe.

Sophie Cunningham and Stephen A. Smith are right. Women shouldn’t have to compete in sports against male athletes who clearly have an unfair advantage.

We’ve got to apply common sense.

Walt Heyer serves as Senior Fellow in the Center for Family Studies at Family Research Council.

This article originally appeared here.