LGBT rights groups are criticizing a
federal judge's ruling blocking federal guidance on transgender
bathroom use.
Within days after the Obama
administration issued its guidance in May, a number of states led by
Texas filed a federal lawsuit to block the rules from taking effect,
arguing that transgender individuals are not protected under Title IX
as maintained by the administration.
In a ruling issued Sunday, U.S.
District Judge Reed O'Connor sided with the states and granted a
nationwide injunction blocking the Department of Justice from
enforcing the guidance until the lawsuit is settled.
(Related: Federal
judge temporarily blocks Obama's transgender bathroom policy.)
“Judge O’Connor's decision to bar
the Department of Justice from enforcing this important guidance puts
thousands of transgender students at even greater risk of
marginalization, harassment, and discrimination as they return to
school this fall,” said Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Legal Director
Sarah Warbelow. “All students, regardless of their gender identity,
deserve to be able to learn in an environment free from
discrimination. Despite this judge’s decision, schools are not
barred from following the federal guidance, and school administrators
still have a responsibility to ensure that the civil rights of all
students are respected and that transgender students have access to
facilities consistent with their gender identity. As lawsuits on the
scope of Title IX proceed, we believe that justice will prevail as
courts continue to recognize that discrimination against transgender
students is a form of sex discrimination.”
Civil rights organization Lambda Legal,
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), ACLU of Texas, National Center
for Lesbian Rights (NCLR), Transgender Law Center and GLBTQ Legal
Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) filed a joint amicus brief in
support of the administration's position.
“A ruling by a single judge in one
circuit cannot and does not undo the years of clear legal precedent
nationwide establishing that transgender students have the right to
go to school without being singled out for discrimination,” the
groups said in a joint statement. “This unfortunate and premature
ruling may, however, confuse school districts that are simply trying
to support their students, including their transgender students. So
let us make it clear to those districts: your obligations under the
law have not changed, and you are still not only allowed but required
to treat transgender students fairly. The scope of this injunction
has no effect on the ability of other courts or lawyers representing
transgender people to continue to rely on the federal government’s
interpretations of Title IX or on prior decisions that have reached
similar conclusions about the scope of federal sex discrimination
laws.”
“The court's misguided decision
targets a small, vulnerable group of young people – transgender
elementary and high school students – for potential continued
harassment, stigma and abuse,” they added.