Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-VA) defended his "model policies" on transgenderism after a transgender student questioned his stance.
During a CNN town hall, a 17-year-old transgender student named "Nico" asked Youngkin about his policies requiring students to use bathrooms and locker rooms and join sports teams based on their sex at birth, not their gender identity.
"Look at me. I am a transgender man," Nico said. "Do you really think the girls in my high school would feel comfortable sharing a restroom with me?"
In response, Youngkin stressed the need for schools to try "very hard" to accommodate their students, calling for adding extra bathrooms in the buildings.
"We need gender-neutral bathrooms so people can use the bathroom that they, in fact, are comfortable with," Youngkin said.
However, the Republican governor said his position on transgender athletes, which blocks transgender students from participating in sports that align with their identity, was not up for conversation.
"I don't think biological boys should be playing sports with biological girls," Youngkin said. "I think that's pretty, that's non-controversial, and something that I think is pretty well understood."
Youngkin has previously defended his viewpoint on his state's policies against transgenderism, stating that parents have the right to be involved in their children's lives, whether in or out of the classroom.
"Parents have a fundamental right to be engaged in their children's lives. And oh, by the way, children have a right to have parents engaged in their lives. We needed to fix a wrong," Youngkin said during a CNN interview in October. "The previous administration had had a policy that excluded parents and, in fact, particularly didn't require the involvement of parents. And let's be clear — parents have this right, and children don't belong to the state; they belong to families."
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The Republican also defended his executive order that blocked Virginia public schools from teaching "inherently divisive concepts, including critical race theory."
"CRT isn't a class that's taught. It's a philosophy that's incorporated in the curriculum," Youngkin said, adding, "the key point is how we teach it. We need to teach it honestly and transparently, but we shouldn't teach it with judgment."
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