Republican lawmakers in Wisconsin tried to pass a bill during the 2015-16 legislative session that would have made it the first state in the nation to force public school students to use bathrooms and locker rooms that correspond to their birth gender. The court ruled that his lawsuit could move forward and deferred to the Obama administration’s position that such prohibitions are a violation of Title IX, which bars sex discrimination in public schools.
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A complaint was filed in May with the Department of Education’s Civil Rights Division alleging that administrators at Tremper High School were discriminating against Whitaker.
“We have had a number of students in school that we must make sure they are not discriminated against and we want to make sure there is no harassment in schools”. Whitaker started a petition against the school’s ruling that collected about 7,000 signatures and a group of students staged a sit in with Whitaker. “It’s just important that he have equal access as other students do to the same facilities”.
A 14-year-old Maryland middle school student filed a federal lawsuit on Tuesday alleging school officials have barred him from using the boys’ restrooms and locker rooms.
Whitaker drew national attention last spring after the school district refused to allow him to run for prom king.
The lawsuit alleges the district has denied him access to boys’ restrooms and directed staff to monitor his restroom usage, forcing him and other transgender students to wear green wristbands to help staff recognize them.
It also states that Whitaker was required to room with girls on a school trip to Europe, even though he was uncomfortable doing so.
Our affiliate WISN 12 News contacted the school district Tuesday night for comment on this lawsuit but have not heard back.
Many school districts around the country, including several in Wisconsin, have adopted policies to address the treatment of transgender students.
Robert Quinn, Principal of Jefferson High School in Tampa, says it isn’t a big change for school leaders.
Those students may identify as transgender.
Virginia’s Fairfax County School Board on Monday made a decision to halt plans to implement new rules that spell out to teachers and administrators how to accommodate transgender students, saying that it is seeking greater legal clarity before moving forward.
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Months after the Obama administration issued a letter to school districts nationwide guiding them on how to handle the transgender bathroom issue, Hillsborough County schools will be offering a universal bathroom in all of its school.
