On June 10th 2014, The Florida High School Athletic Association announced that girls would be mandated to wear helmets while playing lacrosse from the 2015 season, on. Already, this announcement has been met with much opposition on social media outlets and we are starting this petition to present a more unified opposition to the new rule change. US Lacrosse, the national governing body for all lacrosse organizations, has not passed a regulation or mandate in respect to helmets for Women's Lacrosse. The mandate will not only increase the cost of playing girls lacrosse but it will also impact the image of the sport. Lacrosse is the fastest growing sport in Florida and this mandate will only hamper its growth in what could potentially be a hotbed. This new rule could also discourage prospective out-of-state teams from coming and playing teams in Florida. Economically, the costs of these 'helmets' would add on to the already formidable cost of playing lacrosse and turn away girls that may be interested in this great sport, furthermore hindering its growth. We are not claiming to be experts in anything, but there are plenty of studies that show that Women's lacrosse is not as concussion-prone or contusion-prone as other sports, which questions the validity of this mandate. UPDATE: It has been proven that additional headgear in women's lacrosse has only increased the amount of injuries, making the sport rougher and less safe. The helmets could also potentially cause heat related issues.

We are asking that FHSAA rescind this mandate on account of the increased amount of injuries that it will cause.

UPDATE: Thanks to the support of US Lacrosse, there are multiple studies that show