Latest news with #TitleIXMonth
Indian Express
3 days ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
Trump administration demands California bar trans girls from girls sports
The Trump administration warned California to revise its policies that allow transgender girls to compete in school sports aligned with their gender identity. Citing a violation of Title IX, the US Department of Education said the state has ten days to comply or face enforcement action, including potential referral to the US Justice Department. The warning follows recent controversy over a transgender high school athlete's performance. In its findings, the federal education agency stated that California's Department of Education and its high school athletics governing body are violating Title IX, a federal law prohibiting sex-based discrimination in educational programs receiving federal aid. Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement that the administration is committed to 'relentlessly enforce Title IX protections for women and girls.' She also cited remarks made by Governor Gavin Newsom in March questioning the fairness of trans girls competing in girls' sports. The Education Department said that unless California reverses course, it could lose federal funding. It further demanded that state officials apologise to female athletes who lost titles to trans competitors and notify all school athletic programmes receiving federal funds that Title IX bars trans girls from participating in girls' sports. Title IX ensures fair treatment and equal opportunity for girls and women in education and sports! #TitleIXMonth — U.S. Department of Education (@usedgov) June 25, 2025 California officials, however, have no plans to alter existing protections. Liz Sanders, spokesperson for the California Department of Education, stated: 'We believe all students should have the opportunity to learn and play at school, and we have consistently applied existing law in support of students' rights to do so.' Izzy Gardon, a spokesperson for Governor Newsom, dismissed the threat as 'dramatic, fake, and completely divorced from reality,' calling the Education Department's letter 'a political document designed to intimidate school officials and unlawfully override well-established state laws protecting students.' The federal government's findings come in the wake of a state championship in which transgender student AB Hernandez won top positions in the girls' high jump and triple jump events. In an unprecedented move, the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) also awarded medals to runners-up who would have placed had Hernandez not participated. The father of a transgender student-athlete in San Luis Obispo County, called the federal move another example of bullying by the administration. 'This really isn't about sports and locker rooms. This is about erasing transgender individuals altogether,' he said, as per AP. His daughter, a rising high school junior, has been on the girls' track team since freshman year and has mainly received support from within the school. The standoff is allegedly part of a larger nationwide effort by the Trump administration to restrict transgender rights. However, California law allows students to participate in sex-segregated programs, including sports and bathroom use, based on their gender identity. In February, Trump had also signed an executive order banning trans women and girls from participating in sports teams that match their gender identity. (With inputs from AP)
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump's Energy Department proposes dismantling parts of Title IX allowing girls on boys' teams
The Trump administration has leaned heavily on Title IX in its effort to purge sports of transgender women and girls, but attorneys and experts on the 1972 civil rights law say its latest move will disproportionately affect girls who are not transgender. The Department of Energy is preparing to roll back a portion of Title IX requiring that some sports be open to 'the underrepresented sex,' a cornerstone of the federal law against sex discrimination in schools that President Trump's administration has said conflicts with his executive order to restrict trans athletes' participation. The department plans to rescind a rule that has for decades allowed girls to try out for boys' sports teams or vice versa when there is no equivalent team at their school, with some exceptions for contact sports. The move would only affect schools and education programs that receive funding from the Energy Department. The department, which traditionally does not regulate or enforce Title IX, plans to rescind a rule that has for decades allowed girls to try out for boys' sports teams or vice versa when there is no equivalent female team at their school, with some exceptions for contact sports. The Women's Sports Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded by Billie Jean King, a foundational figure in women's fight for parity in sports in the 1960s and 70s, said the Energy Department's proposal threatens to unravel years of progress and limit athletic opportunities for girls. 'To uphold the spirit and promise of Title IX, we urge for it to be withdrawn,' the group said in an emailed statement to The Hill. In justifying its proposal, announced last month, the Energy Department said athletics rules allowing girls to compete on boys' teams 'ignore differences between the sexes which are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality,' language from Trump's day one executive order proclaiming the federal government recognizes only two sexes, male and female. Rescinding the regulation, the department said, aligns with another Trump order declaring the U.S. opposes 'male competitive participation in women's sports' as a matter of 'safety, fairness, dignity and truth.' The Education Department, which has historically enforced Title IX, has launched more than two dozen investigations this year into states, school districts and sports associations that allow trans girls to compete against and alongside girls who are not transgender. In announcing that the department would recognize June, which is traditionally Pride Month, as 'Title IX Month,' Education Secretary Linda McMahon said the administration 'will fight on every front to protect women's and girls' sports.' The changes the Department of Energy proposed would do little to further that objective, said James Nussbaum, an attorney focused on education and sports law at Church, Church, Hittle, and Antrim in Indiana. 'I'm scratching my head for the motivation behind [rescinding the rule] because they mention the 'Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports' executive order, but it won't really apply in the vast majority of those cases because [the rule] only allows a person to participate in a sport of the other sex on two conditions,' Nussbaum said. 'One, the school doesn't already offer that sport for their sex, and two, they're the 'underrepresented sex' historically, and that's just not male sports at the vast majority of schools.' While no high schools in the U.S. offer an all-girls tackle football team, for example, more than 4,000 girls played 11-person tackle football on boys' teams for the 2023-2024 school year, according to the National Federation of State High Schools Association. An Energy Department spokesperson did not return a request for comment. Government agencies looking to change federal regulations must typically do so through a lengthy administrative process beginning with advance notice of proposed rulemaking and a public comment period generally lasting 30-60 days. The Energy Department's Title IX proposal, submitted as a 'direct final rule,' (DFR) would skirt traditional regulatory channels, allowing it to take effect automatically on July 15 absent 'significant adverse comments,' the deadline for which to submit is Monday. DFRs are exempt from parts of the standard rulemaking process, with which federal agencies must comply under the Administrative Procedures Act. Agencies may use DFRs when addressing issues that are technical, uncontroversial or unlikely to elicit a significant adverse response. 'None of that applies in this situation,' said Shiwali Patel, senior director of safe and inclusive schools at the National Women's Law Center. 'These are regulations that are long-standing, that have existed for decades.' That the athletics proposal originated in the Department of Energy rather than the Department of Education, whose Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is typically responsible for regulating and enforcing Title IX, is unusual, legal experts said. Other agencies providing federal financial assistance to educational institutions also bear some enforcement responsibility, and under the Trump administration, the Health and Human Services and Justice departments have moved to carry out the law. In April, the departments of Justice and Education launched a joint special investigations task force to streamline the government's handling of Title IX inquiries, citing ballooning caseloads. 'Generally, things have followed kind of a principle of logic — you stick to the things you're experts in, you regulate the things that you are tasked with regulating,' said Maha Ibrahim, program managing attorney for Equal Rights Advocates, a nonprofit gender justice and women's rights organization. In the past, she said, federal agencies such as the Energy Department might propose updating their Title IX regulations to mirror those issued by the Education Department to ensure cross-agency consistency, but they don't usually 'step out of their lane and do the initial regulatory change.' 'This is unusual in an alarming way,' she said. The Department of Energy, with a larger budget and greater resources to conduct investigations, was perhaps the better choice to introduce the proposal over the Education Department, which Trump has sought to close, Ibrahim said. In March, the agency shuttered seven of its 12 civil rights enforcement offices and fired hundreds of workers, K-12 Dive reported. Through its Renew America's Schools Program, the Energy Department has invested $372.5 million in K-12 public school districts nationwide. The department also provides over $3.5 billion annually through grant programs to more than 300 colleges and universities. While the Energy Department's proposal would only directly affect schools that receive its funding, the plan would create inconsistencies among federal agencies with Title IX regulations, confusing schools and potentially hampering students' and educators' ability to file claims, said Patel, of the National Women's Law Center. The organization, which advocates for women's and LGBTQ rights, plans to submit a comment opposing the rule change, she said. More than 1,800 comments have already been submitted, but their content is not publicly available. The Title IX proposal is part of a larger Department of Energy push to quickly eliminate or reduce dozens of regulations that it said in May 'are driving up costs and lowering quality of life for the American people.' 'While it would normally take years for the Department of Energy to remove just a handful of regulations, the Trump Administration assembled a team working around the clock to reduce costs and deliver results for the American people in just over 110 days,' Energy Secretary Chris Wright said last month. The department's deregulatory efforts include terminating or modifying 47 rules that would, once finalized, free up an estimated $11 billion and cut more than 125,000 words from the Code of Federal Regulations, the department said. Rules on the chopping block include diversity, equity, and inclusion requirements for federal grant recipients, which the Energy Department has called 'unscientific.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
14-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Trump's Energy Department proposes dismantling parts of Title IX allowing girls on boys' teams
The Trump administration has leaned heavily on Title IX in its effort to purge sports of transgender women and girls, but attorneys and experts on the 1972 civil rights law say its latest move will disproportionately affect girls who are not transgender. The Department of Energy is preparing to roll back a portion of Title IX requiring that some sports be open to 'the underrepresented sex,' a cornerstone of the federal law against sex discrimination in schools that President Trump's administration has said conflicts with his executive order to restrict trans athletes' participation. The department plans to rescind a rule that has for decades allowed girls to try out for boys' sports teams or vice versa when there is no equivalent team at their school, with some exceptions for contact sports. The move would only affect schools and education programs that receive funding from the Energy Department. The department, which traditionally does not regulate or enforce Title IX, plans to rescind a rule that has for decades allowed girls to try out for boys' sports teams or vice versa when there is no equivalent female team at their school, with some exceptions for contact sports. The Women's Sports Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded by Billie Jean King, a foundational figure in women's fight for parity in sports in the 1960s and 70s, said the Energy Department's proposal threatens to unravel years of progress and limit athletic opportunities for girls. 'To uphold the spirit and promise of Title IX, we urge for it to be withdrawn,' the group said in an emailed statement to The Hill. In justifying its proposal, announced last month, the Energy Department said athletics rules allowing girls to compete on boys' teams 'ignore differences between the sexes which are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality,' language from Trump's day one executive order proclaiming the federal government recognizes only two sexes, male and female. Rescinding the regulation, the department said, aligns with another Trump order declaring the U.S. opposes 'male competitive participation in women's sports' as a matter of 'safety, fairness, dignity and truth.' The Education Department, which has historically enforced Title IX, has launched more than two dozen investigations this year into states, school districts and sports associations that allow trans girls to compete against and alongside girls who are not transgender. In announcing that the department would recognize June, which is traditionally Pride Month, as 'Title IX Month,' Education Secretary Linda McMahon said the administration 'will fight on every front to protect women's and girls' sports.' The changes the Department of Energy proposed would do little to further that objective, said James Nussbaum, an attorney focused on education and sports law at Church, Church, Hittle, and Antrim in Indiana. 'I'm scratching my head for the motivation behind [rescinding the rule] because they mention the 'Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports' executive order, but it won't really apply in the vast majority of those cases because [the rule] only allows a person to participate in a sport of the other sex on two conditions,' Nussbaum said. 'One, the school doesn't already offer that sport for their sex, and two, they're the 'underrepresented sex' historically, and that's just not male sports at the vast majority of schools.' While no high schools in the U.S. offer an all-girls tackle football team, for example, more than 4,000 girls played 11-person tackle football on boys' teams for the 2023-2024 school year, according to the National Federation of State High Schools Association. An Energy Department spokesperson did not return a request for comment. Government agencies looking to change federal regulations must typically do so through a lengthy administrative process beginning with advance notice of proposed rulemaking and a public comment period generally lasting 30-60 days. The Energy Department's Title IX proposal, submitted as a 'direct final rule,' (DFR) would skirt traditional regulatory channels, allowing it to take effect automatically on July 15 absent 'significant adverse comments,' the deadline for which to submit is Monday. DFRs are exempt from parts of the standard rulemaking process, with which federal agencies must comply under the Administrative Procedures Act. Agencies may use DFRs when addressing issues that are technical, uncontroversial or unlikely to elicit a significant adverse response. 'None of that applies in this situation,' said Shiwali Patel, senior director of safe and inclusive schools at the National Women's Law Center. 'These are regulations that are long-standing, that have existed for decades.' That the athletics proposal originated in the Department of Energy rather than the Department of Education, whose Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is typically responsible for regulating and enforcing Title IX, is unusual, legal experts said. Other agencies providing federal financial assistance to educational institutions also bear some enforcement responsibility, and under the Trump administration, the Health and Human Services and Justice departments have moved to carry out the law. In April, the departments of Justice and Education launched a joint special investigations task force to streamline the government's handling of Title IX inquiries, citing ballooning caseloads. 'Generally, things have followed kind of a principle of logic — you stick to the things you're experts in, you regulate the things that you are tasked with regulating,' said Maha Ibrahim, program managing attorney for Equal Rights Advocates, a nonprofit gender justice and women's rights organization. In the past, she said, federal agencies such as the Energy Department might propose updating their Title IX regulations to mirror those issued by the Education Department to ensure cross-agency consistency, but they don't usually 'step out of their lane and do the initial regulatory change.' 'This is unusual in an alarming way,' she said. The Department of Energy, with a larger budget and greater resources to conduct investigations, was perhaps the better choice to introduce the proposal over the Education Department, which Trump has sought to close, Ibrahim said. In March, the agency shuttered seven of its 12 civil rights enforcement offices and fired hundreds of workers, K-12 Dive reported. Through its Renew America's Schools Program, the Energy Department has invested $372.5 million in K-12 public school districts nationwide. The department also provides over $3.5 billion annually through grant programs to more than 300 colleges and universities. While the Energy Department's proposal would only directly affect schools that receive its funding, the plan would create inconsistencies among federal agencies with Title IX regulations, confusing schools and potentially hampering students' and educators' ability to file claims, said Patel, of the National Women's Law Center. The organization, which advocates for women's and LGBTQ rights, plans to submit a comment opposing the rule change, she said. More than 1,800 comments have already been submitted, but their content is not publicly available. The Title IX proposal is part of a larger Department of Energy push to quickly eliminate or reduce dozens of regulations that it said in May 'are driving up costs and lowering quality of life for the American people.' 'While it would normally take years for the Department of Energy to remove just a handful of regulations, the Trump Administration assembled a team working around the clock to reduce costs and deliver results for the American people in just over 110 days,' Energy Secretary Chris Wright said last month. The department's deregulatory efforts include terminating or modifying 47 rules that would, once finalized, free up an estimated $11 billion and cut more than 125,000 words from the Code of Federal Regulations, the department said. Rules on the chopping block include diversity, equity, and inclusion requirements for federal grant recipients, which the Energy Department has called 'unscientific.'
Chicago Tribune
06-06-2025
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
Letters to the Editor: False information being spread in case of transgender athlete
I am writing in response to the Naperville Sun article, 'Meeting packed with supporters/opponents of trans student athletes,' published Wednesday, June 4. I support transgender people and our top-ranked Naperville public schools. I thank Naperville schools for their continued support of all children. Hours of comments at the two recent Naperville District 203 School Board meetings would have been unnecessary if not for Awake Illinois, an anti-LGBTQ+ hate group, exposing the face and details about a transgender child. The majority of attendees supported transgender rights. Anti-transgender speakers made numerous false claims, including: 1. Some said the child involved is a boy. False. Transgender girls are not boys. The repeated phrase of 'boys in girls' sports' is a slur, not a fact. 2. No child in Naperville District 203 has 'pretended to be a girl' to win at sports. 3. No transgender females have changed or showered in locker rooms with cisgender girls. Gender accommodations are discussed among the student, their family and the school. 4. No federal law supersedes state law in this sports competition case. 5. There is no such thing as Title IX Month nor has it replaced Pride Month. An executive order creating Title IX Month has no legal standing. Title IX protects all students from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Awake used an isolated case to discriminate, marginalize, intimidate and erase transgender people and to call for defunding public schools. Naperville District 203 Policy 7:10 explicitly states that equal education and extra-curricular opportunities shall be available for all students regardless of gender identity. Policy 7:20 states that harassment of students is prohibited based on gender identity. The relentless bullying of transgender people by the current Trump administration and hate groups like Awake Illinois contributes to the distress of trans children, their families and allies. Awake and MAGA extremists try to foment fear of transgender people and destroy public schools, whose mission is to educate all students, give all students equal opportunities, and make all students feel valued and welcomed. Transgender athletes in sports warrant study by the scientific community. Decisions must not be dictated by Christian nationalists or others who hate transgender people, deny their existence or aim to erode their rights. Lies about trans kids must not be used to try to defund public schools. Being transgender is not an ideology, but one of many natural ways to be. Transgender people want to live their lives just like everyone else.
Axios
04-06-2025
- General
- Axios
Trump admin rolls back LGBTQ+ gains during Pride Month
The Trump administration isn't celebrating Pride Month, but rather walking back initiatives to recognize LGBTQ+ communities. The big picture: It's a part of a larger repeal of diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts by the administration, which have contributed to an increasingly hostile climate for LGBTQ+ people in the U.S., particularly for transgender individuals. State of play: White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday that the White House has "no plans" to make a proclamation for the month of June. That marks a reversal from the yearly "Pride Month" proclamations and elaborate celebrations under former President Biden. Meanwhile, the Department of Education on Tuesday announced it's recognizing June as Title IX Month, "commemorating women and celebrating their struggle for, and achievement of, equal educational opportunity." Flashback: Trump didn't issue presidential proclamations celebrating Pride in his first term either, only marking the occasion with a social media post in 2019. Zoom in: In the first few days of Pride Month, the administration has taken steps to target LGBTQ+ recognition efforts. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the Navy to rename a ship that bears the name of gay rights pioneer Harvey Milk. Hegseth is "committed to ensuring that the names attached to all DOD installations and assets are reflective of the Commander-in-Chief's priorities, our nation's history, and the warrior ethos," Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement. The FBI on Monday requested tips from the public on hospitals, clinics or practitioners performing gender-affirming surgeries to youth, putting that care among transgender youth under close scrutiny. Trump threatened to cut funding to California if it continues to allow transgender athletes to compete in women's sports, doubling down this week after a trans high schooler won state championships. "President Trump is protecting women in sports and restoring common sense," spokesperson Harrison Fields told Axios Tuesday. The National Park Service planned to close Dupont Circle in D.C. to bar people from celebrating Pride, but later reverted. Between the lines: Minnesota state Rep. Leigh Finke told Axios that while acts of violence are not directly tied to the Trump administration, his policies and the "language of dehumanization and ... language of eradication" have consequences. Our thought bubble via Axios' Russell Contreras: Trump's pullback on Pride comes as the nation is set the celebrate the fourth anniversary of Juneteenth becoming a national holiday.
