Can SCOTUS End the Transgender Bathroom Debate?
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Last Friday, the Supreme Court declared that it will make its first ever ruling on transgender rights. Specifically, the court will decide whether federal anti-discrimination law protects transgender students’ bathroom rights. If the justices extend the law’s protection, students across the U.S. will be allowed to use the bathroom that corresponds with their gender identity. The case, one of many nationwide addressing the controversy, stems from a school district in Virginia that wishes to keep bathrooms segregated based on biological sex.
I. Barack Obama
President Obama has led the national effort to ensure that students can use bathrooms according to their gender identities. The president is hoping to extend the federal anti-discrimination protections as part of an ongoing movement to ensure equal treatment for all Americans. He sees the issue in line with previous civil rights battles fought by racial minorities and the gay and lesbian communities. Obama believes protecting transgender rights is especially important in schools, in order to guarantee that children can grow up and be educated in environments where they aren’t made to feel different or unacceptable. In schools where bathrooms are segregated by biological sex, the president believes transgender students are placed at an unfair disadvantage that will prevent them from maturing to their full potential.
II. Ted Cruz
Sen. Ted Cruz (R — Tex.) is one of the strongest opponents of mixed-sex school bathrooms. Cruz sees it as a clear breach of common-sense societal rules protecting children from discomfort and predation. The senator notes that changes could also apply to locker room facilities, meaning public schools might “let teenage boys shower with teenage girls.” To Cruz, this is political correctness “gone off the deep end.” He also believes it is part of an effort by liberals to impose their will on communities that prefer a more traditional way of life. Cruz points to what he thinks are unfair efforts to label critics of the change as bigots. He cites the example of Curt Schilling, the outspoken former baseball pitcher who was fired from his commentary job for an online post related to the issue.
III. Dennis Daugaard
Dennis Daugaard, the governor of South Dakota, was recently at the center of one of the nation’s major controversies over transgender bathroom rights. The Republican governor ultimately decided to strike down a state law banning mixed-sex bathrooms, saying the issue is best left up to local school districts. Daugaard notes that individual schools vary widely in many ways and therefore can’t be forced to adopt uniform solutions. Major variations include the size of the schools and the cultures in their surrounding communities. Some smaller schools, for instance, have reportedly allowed transgender students to use faculty bathrooms, which they believe allows them safe access without upsetting other children or their traditionally minded families. For Daugaard, this is further evidence of the conservative principle that the “best government is the government closest to the people.”
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Further Reading: Reuters / Washington Times / The Hill
This brief was written by Jared Metzker.
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