Federal Judge: 4 States Must Enforce New Title IX Rules on Gender
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A federal judge has shot down a bid to block the Biden administration’s new Title IX rule from going into effect in four Southern states.
The July 30 ruling from U.S. District Judge Annemarie Axon of the Northern District of Alabama paves the way for the U.S. Department of Education to enforce its new rule in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina starting on Aug. 1.
Some 26 Republican-led states have mounted legal challenges to the Title IX revision, which declares that the existing federal law against sex-based discrimination in education settings also prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
The rule does not address sex-separate sports teams, but it would apply to bathrooms, locker rooms, and shower areas, meaning that schools and colleges could lose federal funding if they require students to use the facilities corresponding to their biological sex.
It also expands the definition of “sex-based harassment” to include addressing someone with a pronoun that aligns with his or her sex but conflicts with his or her preferred gender. Educators who don’t comply could be subject to Title IX investigation and potential discipline, even if complying would go against their religious or moral convictions.
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