Several LGBT groups are calling on the
Trump administration to keep in place guidance that protects
transgender students.
Last week, the Department of Justice
withdrew its objection to an injunction that blocked government
guidance issued by the Department of Education on allowing
transgender students to use the bathroom of their choice. The Obama
administration had asked an appeals court to limit the scope of the
injunction to the 12 states challenging the guidance. The Trump
administration withdrew that request on Friday.
(Related: Trump
administration signals it may abandon effort to protect transgender
students.)
In a letter addressed to Attorney
General Jeff Sessions and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, three LGBT
groups, the National Center for Transgender Equality, GLSEN and the
Human Rights Campaign (HRC), called on the new administration to keep
the policy in place.
“The Departments’ guidance
documents help educational institutions understand and comply with
the law,” the
groups wrote. “Under Title IX, all forms of gender-based
discrimination are prohibited unless specifically exempted by
statute. This includes sexual violence, sexual harassment, and
bullying and harassment based on gender. It also includes
discrimination against the hundreds of thousands of students who were
assigned one gender at birth but who live and attend school as
another.”
Withdrawal of this critical guidance
would represent a “major retreat” from commitments made by DeVos
to “act justly and be compassionate” after her confirmation, the
groups added.
A spokesman for the Justice Department
acknowledged they had received the letter but did not comment.