This week, top education officials in Oklahoma and Louisiana instructed schools to ignore President Joe Biden’s rewrite of Title IX, the federal civil rights legislation that took effect in 1972 to prohibit sex discrimination in federally funded schools.
As Townhall covered, the Biden administration changed the basis of “sex” to now encompass the concept of “gender identity.”
In a letter sent on Monday, Louisiana Superintendent of Education Cade Brumley wrote that the policies conflict with state law and schools “should not alter policies or procedures at this time,” according to The Hill. Last year, Louisiana became the 18th state to prohibit so-called transgender women and girls from playing on female school sports teams.
In the letter, Brumley said “these new Title IX rules could be in direct contradiction with Louisiana’s Fairness in Women’s Sports Act, a law that affirms school-sanctioned athletic participation must be divided by biological sex unless the configuration is co-ed in nature.”
Louisiana State Superintendent @cadebrumley sent this letter to Lousiana School Districts yesterday regarding the Title IX final rule just promulgated by the Biden Administration.
— Moms for Liberty (@Moms4Liberty) April 23, 2024
The Title IX final rule will trump all state parental rights laws, at least in the areas of gender… pic.twitter.com/YDuVQ7oAeZ
Ryan Walters, the state superintendent of public instruction in Oklahoma, wrote to school officials that there are “some serious concerns with the legality of these rule changes, especially as it relates to its redefinition of ‘sex’ to include gender identity.”
“This re-definition could prohibit single-sex extra-curriculars, including athletics, scholarship programs, locker rooms, bathrooms, and any other activity or space that is exclusive to one sex. Additionally, these rules could turn the act of not using preferred pronouns into a Title IX violation, which would be a clear violation of the First Amendment,” he added.
“I believe these rules changes are illegal and unconstitutional. They violate the First Amendment, the Administrative Procedures Act, and longstanding civil rights protections for women and girls,” he continued, adding that Biden’s Title IX rewrite puts “women in danger.”
NEW: Oklahoma schools chief @RyanWaltersSupt has directed all districts not to comply with Biden's Title IX rewrite, telling @dcexaminer Biden is "eradicating women’s rights and putting women in danger."
— Breccan F. Thies (@BreccanFThies) April 24, 2024
MORE: https://t.co/gDg8ptBYD4 pic.twitter.com/TZ4OENv0Dr
When the regulations were released, Biden’s education secretary, Miguel Cardona, claimed that these new rules that erase protections for women somehow built upon the legacy of Title IX.
“These regulations make it crystal clear that everyone can access schools that are safe, welcoming and that respect their rights,” Miguel Cardona, Biden’s education secretary, said in a call with reporters from The New York Times on Thursday.
In addition, Jennifer Klein, the director of the White House Gender Policy Council, told the Times that the rules were designed to strike a balance, claiming they would “restore and strengthen vital protections that were weakened by the prior administration, while reaffirming our longstanding commitment to fundamental fairness.”
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