Will the Supreme Court Take Up the Case of Virginia Transgender Student?
In light of the Obama administration’s “transgender mandate” to public schools across the country, a Virginia school board is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh-in on the matter before the next school year begins.
The Gloucester County School Board has filed an emergency application to the high court, seeking to block a lower court’s order that ruled in favor of a transgender student’s use of opposite-sex bathrooms and shower facilities. Attorneys for the district say the lower court’s order is depriving parents of their right to “direct the education and upbringing of their children.”
The case revolves around “Gavin” Grimm, a biological girl who has a mental health condition that makes her believe she is a boy. Her family sued the school district, saying it violated her rights under Title IX when it refused to allow her access to boys’ bathroom and locker room facilities at the school.
The school board is asking the Supreme Court to put the lower court injunction on hold until it decides if it will review the case, saying the mandate, if it were to take effect, would disrupt the upcoming school year. The district’s attorneys also state the lower court gave too much deference to the Obama administration’s transgender mandate to public schools.
