“We will continue to file lawsuits representing transgender students and litigate them to the fullest extent of the law.”

(Fort Worth, TX – August 22, 2016) – A U.S. District Court judge today issued a preliminary injunction against the federal government’s guidance to public school districts regarding their legal responsibility to allow transgender students to use the same restrooms as other students. The ruling came in the multi-state lawsuit, Texas v. United States.

Five civil rights organizations who had submitted a joint amicus (friend-of-the-court) brief in the lawsuit – Lambda Legal, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and ACLU of Texas; National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR); Transgender Law Center; and GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) – issued the following statement in response to U.S. District Court Judge Reed O’Connor’s ruling:

“A ruling by a single judge in one circuit cannot and does not undo the years of clear legal precedent nationwide establishing that transgender students have the right to go to school without being singled out for discrimination. This unfortunate and premature ruling may, however, confuse school districts that are simply trying to support their students, including their transgender students. So let us make it clear to those districts: your obligations under the law have not changed, and you are still not only allowed but required to treat transgender students fairly. The scope of this injunction has no effect on the ability of other courts or lawyers representing transgender people to continue to rely on the federal government’s interpretations of Title IX or on prior decisions that have reached similar conclusions about the scope of federal sex discrimination laws.

“The court’s misguided decision targets a small, vulnerable group of young people – transgender elementary and high school students – for potential continued harassment, stigma and abuse.”

Although the court failed to consider the interests of the very students the federal laws were intended to protect, the five civil rights organizations who advocated on their behalf avowed, “We will continue to file lawsuits representing transgender students and litigate them to the fullest extent of the law—regardless of what happens with this particular federal guidance.”

Texas v. United States was brought by Texas and 10 other states — subsequently joined by two additional states — against the United States, the Departments of Justice, Education and Labor and numerous federal officials. The plaintiffs include the states of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky (through its governor), Louisiana, Mississippi (through its governor), Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia, and Wisconsin, and the Arizona Department of Education, the Heber-Overgaard Unified School District in Arizona, Harrold Independent School District in Texas, and Maine Governor Paul LePage. Several of these plaintiffs lie in the Fourth, Sixth, Ninth, and Eleventh Circuits, which had issued binding appellate decisions consistent with the guidance of the federal agencies.

The lawsuit targets various federal letters, guides, memos, and statements regarding Title IX of the Education Amendments that conclude that federal bans on sex discrimination encompass gender identity discrimination, and that transgender individuals should be allowed to use restrooms consistent with their gender identity. The lawsuit claims that that guidance is in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act and the Constitution. A copycat lawsuit was filed recently by the state of Nebraska, joined by Arkansas, Kansas, Michigan (through its attorney general), Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Wyoming.

The court’s order can be read Tutaj.

The joint amicus brief filed by the five civil rights organizations can be read Tutaj.

“We oppose the efforts of state officials to manipulate the federal court system in order to skirt well-established law in their home circuits that affirm and respect the rights of transgender students and employees.”

(FORT WORTH, Texas) – Five leading national civil and LGBT rights organizations urged the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas to reject an effort to block the Obama administration’s interpretations of several federal laws pending trial in Texas v. United States, including federal guidance advising public school districts across the country that the federal Departments of Justice and Education believe that transgender students should be allowed to use restrooms that correspond with their gender identity. Texas and 12 other states or governors or agencies of those states argued in court today for a preliminary injunction enjoining these federal agencies’ interpretations from having any effect while the lawsuit proceeds.

The five organizations – Lambda Legal; American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and ACLU of Texas; Transgender Law Center; National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR); and GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) – issued the following joint statement in response to the hearing today on a preliminary injunction: “Texas and 12 other states, governors of states and political jurisdictions have filed a meritless lawsuit against multiple federal agencies seeking to preserve the ability to discriminate against a highly vulnerable population – transgender elementary and high school students and transgender employees. We are urging this court to protect transgender students and workers and allow them to enjoy a safe and discrimination-free education and workplace. We filed an amicus brief in this case because we oppose the efforts of state officials to manipulate the federal court system in order to skirt well-established law in their home circuits that affirms and respects the rights of transgender students and employees. We urge the court to deny the states’ request for a preliminary injunction.”

In addition to Texas, the other plaintiffs in Texas v. United States include: Harrold Independent School District in Texas; the Arizona Department of Education; the Heber-Overgaard Unified School District in Arizona; Wisconsin; Maine Governor Paul LePage; Kentucky; Mississippi; Oklahoma; Louisiana; Alabama; Georgia; Tennessee; West Virginia; and Utah. Named defendants include: the United States of America, the Departments of Justice, Education and Labor, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and numerous federal officials. The lawsuit targets various federal letters, guides, memos, and statements regarding Title IX of the Education Amendments, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) that conclude that federal bans on sex discrimination encompass gender identity discrimination and that individuals should be allowed to access single-sex, multi-user facilities consistent with their gender identity. The lawsuit seeks to have those letters, guides, memos and statements declared to be in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act and the Constitution and enjoined nationwide. A copycat lawsuit was filed recently by the state of Nebraska, joined by Arkansas, Kansas, Michigan (through its attorney general), Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Wyoming.

“State officials should not be allowed to manipulate the federal court system in order to skirt rulings in their home circuits with which they disagree, including, as is the case here, rulings affirming and respecting the rights of transgender students.”

(Wichita Falls, TX – July 28, 2016) – Five leading national civil and LGBT rights organizations late yesterday filed an amicus (friend of the court) brief in the multi-state lawsuit challenging the Obama administration’s guidance regarding public school districts’ responsibility to allow transgender students to use the same restrooms as other students. The lawsuit also targets guidance addressing transgender workers. The brief in Texas v. United States argues that many of the states and political jurisdictions joining the lawsuit are doing so improperly in order to avoid transgender-affirming rulings handed down by their federal circuits and that granting a nationwide injunction would be improper for this reason.

The five organizations – Lambda Legal; American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and ACLU of Texas; Transgender Law Center; National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR); and GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) – issued the following joint statement after filing the brief with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas – Wichita Falls Division:

“This past May, Texas and 10 other states, governors of states and political jurisdictions (along with school districts in two states) filed a meritless lawsuit — subsequently joined by two additional states, through their governors — against multiple federal agencies seeking to preserve their ability to discriminate against a vulnerable group of young people – transgender elementary and high school students. These state officials want to block implementation of guidance issued by the U.S. Departments of Education and Justice recognizing that schools must be safe, respectful and nurturing environments for all students and that singling out transgender students for separate and unequal treatment is demeaning and harmful to them. ”

“Equally troubling, several parties to this lawsuit – the Arizona Department of Education, the Heber-Overgaard Unified School District in Arizona, and the states of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky (through its governor), Tennessee, and West Virginia – lie in the Fourth, Sixth, Ninth, and Eleventh Circuits, which have issued binding appellate decisions consistent with the guidance of the federal agencies. Now these parties seek to have a single federal district court in Texas issue a nationwide injunction contrary to the law in their home circuits. State officials should not be allowed to manipulate the federal court system in order to skirt rulings in their home circuits with which they disagree, including, as is the case here, rulings affirming and respecting the rights of transgender students.”

In addition to Texas and the political jurisdictions named above, the other plaintiffs in Texas v. United States include: Harrold Independent School District in Texas; Wisconsin; Maine Governor Paul LePage; Mississippi (through its governor); Oklahoma; Louisiana; and Utah. Named defendants include: the United States, the Departments of Justice, Education and Labor and numerous federal officials. The lawsuit targets various federal letters, guides, memos, and statements regarding Title IX of the Education Amendments, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) that conclude that federal bans on sex discrimination encompass gender identity discrimination and that transgender individuals should be allowed to use the same restrooms as others, consistent with their gender identity. The lawsuit seeks to have those letters, guides, memos and statements declared to be in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act and the Constitution and enjoined nationwide. A copycat lawsuit was filed recently by the state of Nebraska, joined by Arkansas, Kansas, Michigan (through its attorney general), Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Wyoming.