White House Won't Say Whether Transgender Bathroom Access Is A Civil Rights Issue
- By
- Carlos Santoscoy
- | February 24, 2017
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer on Thursday dodged questions on whether transgender bathroom access is a civil rights issue.
Spicer was repeatedly asked about the administration's decision to revoke Obama-era guidance from the Department of Education that instructed public schools to allow transgender students to use the bathroom of their choice.
(Related: Trump rescinds Obama-era guidance on transgender students.)
“The Human Rights Campaign said in rescinding the guidance last night that this is not a states’ rights issue, it’s a civil rights issue, and therefore is in the purview of the federal government. Do you disagree that this is a civil rights issue?” a Fox News reporter asked.
“It’s a question of where it’s appropriately addressed, and I think there’s a reason,” Spicer responded. “We got to remember, this guidance was enjoined last August by a court. It hasn’t been enforced. There was no comment period by anyone, by the Human Rights Campaign, by teachers, parents, students. Nobody had any input in this, and it seems to me a little interesting that if this was any other issue, people would be crying foul that the process wasn’t followed.”
“The reality is that if you look at Title IX, it was enacted in 1972. The idea that this was even contemplated in that is preposterous on its face, but that doesn’t mean — the president obviously understands the issue and the challenges that especially young children face. He just believes that this is a state issue that needs to be addressed by states as he does with a lot of issues that we’ve talked about.”
“Does the White House disagree that this is an issue with civil rights?”
“I think it’s not a question of whether it’s civil rights. It’s a question of whether it’s appropriately addressed. As I noted, it’s appropriately addressed at the state level,” Spicer answered.