Citation

Eckes SE. J. LGBT Youth 2017; 14(3): 247-265.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/19361653.2017.1324345

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

As society's views of sexual orientation and gender identity have significantly evolved in recent years, school districts across the country are addressing how to create policies that align with the law in this area. One recent issue involves laws and policies focused on transgender students and their right to access restrooms that align with their gender identity. Within these policies, school officials often attempt to balance requests to provide equal access for transgender students with other requests related to privacy concerns. This article presents a legal case analysis around the most recent federal circuit court decision that provides some guidance in this area. The opinion is important because it is the highest court to have addressed the matter as it relates to transgender students in K-12 public schools. It was also decided within a few weeks of the U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Department of Justice's "Dear Colleague" letter in May 2016. Most recently, however, The U.S. Department of Education, under the Trump administration, rescinded the Dear Colleague letter. As a result, the U.S. Supreme Court vacated the most recent federal circuit court's opinion and the issue remains in a state of flux.

Language: en

Keywords

access; discrimination; legal; LGBT; policy