A transgender student was able to win round one in what has become an ugly battle in an Illinois school district.
A group known as “Parents for Privacy” sued Illinois School District 221 after a transgender student successfully fought for the right to use the restroom and locker room facilities that corresponded with her gender identity. The group, which is supported by known transgender hate group the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), claims they suffered “emotional stress” because the transgender female student was allowed access to the girl’s locker room.
“High school students do not have a constitutional right not to share restrooms or locker rooms with transgender students whose sex assigned at birth is different than theirs.”
United States Magistrate Judge Jeffrey T. Gilbert ruled against granting the group a preliminary injunction on Tuesday. Had the injunction been granted, transgender students would have been prevented from being able to use the facilities that match their identity. “High school students do not have a constitutional right not to share restrooms or locker rooms with transgender students whose sex assigned at birth is different than theirs,” explained Gilbert in an 82-page report.
The case will now go to United States District Judge Jorge Alonso who can either uphold Judge Gilbert’s recommendation or rule against it. Gilbert agreed with a 7th circuit ruling that found “a transgender person’s gender identity is an important factor to be considered in determining whether his or her needs, as well as those of cisgender people, can be accommodated in the course of allocating or regulating the use of restrooms and locker rooms.”
“No cisgender student is compelled to use a restroom with a transgender student if he or she does not want to do so”
“The District’s Restroom Policy allows transgender students to use restrooms consistent with their gender identity. No cisgender student is compelled to use a restroom with a transgender student if he or she does not want to do so,” Gilbert wrote in support of his decision. “In addition, District 211 does not require any cisgender girl student to use a locker room with (a transgender student) if she does not want to do so.”
Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Gary McCaleb expressed his disappointment with the magistrate’s ruling. “School policies should protect the privacy and safety of all students, no matter who they are. Young students should be not be forced into an intimate setting like a locker room with someone of the opposite sex,” said Gary McCaleb in a statement.
