Biden Title IX Proposal Limits Bans on Transgender Athletes

The Department of Education said the proposal was meant to “advance Title IX’s longstanding goal of ensuring equal opportunity in athletics,” while offering “much needed clarity” about how public schools, as well as colleges and universities, should handle an issue that has led to vociferous debate, particularly when it comes to transgender athletes in women’s sports.

“Being on a sports team is an important part of the school experience for students of all ages,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, adding that “every student should be able to have the full experience of attending school in America, including participating in athletics, free from discrimination.”

It would be up to schools to navigate how, exactly, the restrictions would be applied. The Education Department advised that schools would have to assess the age of students, the level of the competition, as well as the nature of the sport itself. The impact may be different, for example, in track versus badminton.

The proposal must undergo a period of public comment. Once in effect, a senior official with the U.S. Department of Education said the federal government would be ready to investigate and enforce violations — up to and including withholding federal funding, if necessary.

Twenty states have laws on the books that ban transgender students participating in sports consistent with their gender identity, according to Movement Advancement Project, a think tank that focuses on gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender parity.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/06/us/transgender-athletes-title-ix-biden-adminstration.html