Justice Dept. sues Kansas school district over transgender policies

The U.S. Department of Justice filed its first lawsuit that challenges a school district’s policies regarding transgender students and claims the rules violate a federal law. 

The backstory:

The Kansas City, Kansas, School District allows students to use their preferred names and pronouns while at school, the Justice Department states. According to the lawsuit, a district policy also allows students to ask that their parents not be told about their "transgender status," and that those requests would be handled on a case-by-case basis. 

Big picture view:

The Justice Department claims in its lawsuit that the school district’s policies violate the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. Arguing that parents have the right to know about their child’s transition, federal attorneys are asking the court to force the Kansas City school district, which has more than 20,000 students, to disavow the policy and provide parents with greater access to their children’s student records.

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What they're saying:

"Parental rights are paramount in the operation of America’s public schools, and Kansas City, Kansas, Public Schools does not know children better than their own parents," Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon said. "The Department will not tolerate school districts playing fast and loose with federal law in the service of radical gender ideology."

The other side:

The school district told The Associated Press that it was not out of compliance with federal law and that it was "disappointed by the DOJ’s decision to file the lawsuit." It did not add anything further, citing the pending litigation. 

Dig deeper:

The lawsuit comes a year after the Department of Education announced investigations into four Kansas school districts regarding their transgender policies in response to a complaint by the conservative group the Defense of Freedom Institute. The DOE determined the four districts’ policies did violate FERPA, but did not note any specific instances of potential violations happening, The Associated Press reported.

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The state of Kansas does not have a law requiring districts to tell parents if their child wants to go by a different name or pronoun. 

What's next:

Of the three other school districts that were a part of the Department of Education’s investigation, one of them, the Topeka School District, has said it would rescind its policy. The other two, Olathe and Shawnee Mission public schools, have not done so and face their own potential lawsuits.

 

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