FMH
3
Background and History 1
Transgender sign with a woman, male, and transgender symbol. Some law-
makers across the United States believe that transgender students should
be required to use only those facilities that correspond with their birth
sex. Others say they should be allowed to use the facilities of their choice.
(Karenr/Dreamstime.com)
Introduction
On May 13, 2016, the U.S. Department of Justice and the
U.S. Department of Education jointly issued a letter to schools
and colleges across the nation regarding the use of bathroom
facilities by transgender students. Its main point was that
As a condition of receiving Federal funds, a school agrees
that it will not exclude, separate, deny benefi ts to, or oth-
erwise treat diff erently on the basis of sex any person in its
educational programs or activities unless expressly autho-
rized to do so under Title IX or its implementing regula-
tions. Th e Departments treat a student’s gender identity as
the student’s sex for purposes of Title IX and its imple-
menting regulations. Th is means that a school must not
treat a transgender student diff erently from the way it
treats other students of the same gender identity. (“Dear
Colleague Letter on Transgender Students” 2016)
Two weeks later, 11 states fi led suit in federal court against
provisions of the letter. In July, 10 more states fi led a similar
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