The case in question is that of Gavin Grimm, a transgender teen who sued the Gloucester County, Virginia, school board for the right to use the boys’ bathroom.
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President Donald Trump is expected to revoke the Obama administration’s lawless directive that sought to impose a so-called transgender or “bathroom” directive on public schools. It argued that anti-trans discrimination is a form of sex discrimination, because discrimination against trans people is rooted in stereotypes and prejudices of what people should be like based on the sex they were assigned at birth. He said in May that he’d rescind the Obama policy, but “still protect everybody”. Sessions advocated for this to become a state by state issue, while DeVos was skeptical of such a sweeping change to Obama’s previous order.
“As Secretary of Education, I consider protecting all students, including LGBTQ students, not only a key priority for the Department, but for every school in America”. The Obama administration then requested the block only apply to the 13 states that filed a lawsuit. “When you look at the guidance that was issued under the Obama administration, first of all, let’s do not forget to the best of my knowledge, that was stalled, never fully implemented, and I think there were various reasons for that – several legal reasons and several procedural reasons”.
Implementation of the guidance was uneven; it was challenged in court and judges had varying interpretations. “It doesn’t matter who’s going into the office, we would still fight that fight”.
“Washington, D.C., Is an inclusive city”.
Mara Keisling, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality, said: “We are hearing that it will be rescinded today”. However, it signals the first major shift in the Department of Justice’s approach to civil rights under a Trump presidency.
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Conservative activists praised Mr Trump’s impending order, saying it protected student rights to privacy. The draft includes language meant to protect transgender students against bullying, which DeVos asked be included, a source said.
