Topline
A San Bernardino County judge temporarily blocked a southern California school district’s policy that required parents to be notified if their children ask to use a different gender identification or pronouns at school, or ask to use facilities that don’t align with their gender at birth, while a lawsuit from the state plays out in court.
A gay and transgender students rights supporter holds a sign during a board meeting of the Chino … [+]
Key Facts
San Bernardino County Superior Court Judge Thomas S. Garza asked why the policy came up and questioned how it protected students during the court hearing, the Associated Press reported.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced just over a week ago that he was suing Chino Valley Unified School District for its policy, saying in the suit it is a “forced outing” rule that violates the California constitution and laws protecting civil rights.
In a statement after Garza issued the temporary restraining order on the policy, Bonta said halting it “upholds the state rights of our LGBTQ+ student community and protects kids from harm.”
Andi Johnson, director of communications for the district, told Forbes in a statement that “while staff respects the temporary ruling to suspend implementation of certain portions of the District’s Parent Notification policy, personnel will continue to fulfill its purpose of creating and maintaining a collaborative relationship between school and home.”
Crucial Quote
“While this fight is far from over, today’s ruling takes a significant step towards ensuring the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of transgender and gender-nonconforming students,” Bonta said in the statement.
What To Watch For
The Associated Press reported the next scheduled court hearing on the matter is on October 13.
Key Background
Chino Valley’s policy was approved by its Board of Education in July. The board president, Sonja Shaw, said at the time the policy was a matter of “parental rights,” noting they wanted “to make sure that our parents at Chino Valley know they’re sending their kids here to be taught, not to be anything else,” KTLA reported. Across the country, some advocates argue schools should allow students to go by other names and pronouns without automatically disclosing it to their parents, framing it as a way to protect transgender children’s privacy and avoid rejection from non-supportive parents, but some parents have pushed back and argued they should be informed. Bonta is not the first attorney general to file a suit against this type of policy. New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin has filed at least four civil rights complaints against districts for similar policies, and released guidance to school districts that discriminating against students and staff for their “race, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, or other protected characteristics” is prohibited under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination. But in other places, like Florida, similar policies have seemingly been implemented without legal issue. In guidance sent to Florida’s Orange County Public Schools teachers, the district advised staff they cannot “provide a personal title or pronoun to students which does not correspond” to their biological sex at birth, and employees cannot ask a student to provide their preferred pronouns.
Further Reading
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/mollybohannon/2023/09/06/judge-blocks-california-school-districts-forced-outing-policy-while-state-lawsuit-plays-out/