Schools Should Not Surrender to Bullies in the Trump Administration
Only one month into his new administration, Donald Trump has prioritized a bullying campaign that is weaponizing the federal government to silence diversity in schools across the country. Empowered by questionably legal pronouncements from the White House, political appointees at federal agencies are now working to find ways to bless discrimination in schools, instead of fulfilling their core job responsibility of enforcing against discrimination.
GLSEN has worked for more than three decades with school leaders to build safer and more inclusive learning environments for LGBTQ+ students, including the over 300,000 transgender students in K-12 schools. In our experience, most school leaders want to do right by their students and ensure that all children have an opportunity to learn. As Trump and his radical appointees at the U.S. Department of Education seek to advance their narrow vision that denies the growing diversity of America’s student population, we are sounding the alarm and urging schools to stand strong against inappropriate pressure from the Trump administration.
“Schools must ensure that all students - including LGBTQ+ youth - can learn in an environment that is free from violence and discrimination. It is not only a moral imperative, but it is their legal obligation.” - Melanie Willingham-Jaggers, Executive Director of GLSEN
LGBTQ+ students remain protected by federal law, no matter what the White House says. Even as Donald Trump pushes out executive orders that deny the existence of transgender people and threaten schools for supporting transgender students, laws like Title IX remain on the books and prohibit sex-based discrimination in schools. Both before and after the landmark Bostock v. Clayton County decision at the U.S. Supreme Court, federal courts have repeatedly recognized - even without clarity or support from the U.S. Department of Education - that Title IX extends to transgender students and applies to facets of transgender students’ lives, including bathroom access and sports participation.
Title IX has not been rewritten in the last month. It continues to state clearly, as passed by Congress in 1972, that “no person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from [...] or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.” For decades, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has worked to enforce Title IX, including through investigations that addressed the exclusion of transgender students from educational opportunities or the failure of school districts to respond to complaints from LGBTQ+ students.
Now, Donald Trump and his political appointees are twisting OCR’s enforcement powers to ignore discrimination, silence diversity, and promote exclusionary policies. One of OCR’s first actions in the new administration, on January 24, was to deny that the increased incidence of book banning could have a discriminatory impact that merits investigation under federal civil rights laws. OCR rescinded their own agreement with Forsyth County Schools in Georgia and dismissed 11 pending complaints, all related to schools that failed to respond to complaints that removal of books from the school library - primarily books related to race or LGBTQ+ themes - could contribute to a hostile environment. PEN America has documented over 10,000 instances of book banning in the 2023-2024 school year alone, with 39% of banned books including LGBTQ+ characters or themes.
OCR’s conclusory dismissal of pending complaints amounts to a dereliction of duty - signaling that students facing similar discriminatory acts will find no recourse with the U.S. Department of Education.
The dismissal of pending complaints has been paired with the launch of targeted investigations into school districts. In one instance, an investigation was launched based only on “recent local reporting,” instead of based on an individual complaint from an impacted student. These targeted investigations challenge schools on a wide range of legal - and sometimes legally required - actions, including support policies for transgender students, inclusive athletics policies, and the establishment of an all-gender restroom.
These targeted investigations are intimidation tactics that seek to promote exclusionary policies and erode protections for marginalized students. OCR cannot force schools to change lawful policies, and any adverse action taken against a school district can be challenged in court. LGBTQ+ students have rights, and schools should not shirk from enforcing them due to inappropriate pressure from political appointees. Schools that are facing pressure from Trump’s appointees should be mindful that students - especially LGBTQ+ students - who are excluded from or denied access to parts of the school experience are also empowered to assert their individual rights in court.
In addition to established legal protections under Title IX, LGBTQ+ students have prevailed in litigation based on constitutional claims, as well as under state law. 26 states provide legal protections for LGBTQ+ students based on sexual orientation and gender identity, and state civil rights offices also accept complaints and may be better positioned to provide relief for LGBTQ+ students facing discrimination. LGBTQ-oriented legal helplines can help students and their families assess the appropriate course of action if they are facing discriminatory policies or hostile behaviors at school. For more information, visit GLSEN’s Know Your Rights webpage.