The current United States Supreme Court term just got a lot more interesting with the highest court in the land agreeing to hear Gloucester County School Board v. G.G., which deals with the issue of school restroom accommodations for transgender students. Specifically, the case deals with whether or not the Department of Education and the Obama administration can require transgender students be allowed to use the restroom that matches their gender identity. This comes under their interpretation of Title IX, the landmark law that deals with gender discrimination in schools.
G.G. is transgender 17 year old boy Gavin Grimm, who came out publicly during his first year of high school. He sued the local school board over a policy requiring that gender restrooms must only be used by those whose “biological sex” matches the sign on the door, alleging that his civil rights were being violated.
Grimm wrote an op-ed that was published in the Washington Post on Thursday, which gives a lot of background information on the case. According to his account, he had been using other public restrooms without issue when he asked the principal to allow the same at school. The principal granted his request, and everything went fine for two months until “a group of parents and community members heard that ‘a girl’ was using the boys’ restroom and began complaining.” After two public meetings where community members discussed Grimm in graphic detail, the school board did an about-face, instituting a new rule requiring him to go to the school nurse’s office or use a new single stall unisex restroom.
[Photo: Washington Post video screen grab]
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