West Virginia Family Challenges Ban on Transgender Student-Athletes at Fourth Circuit
RICHMOND, Va. 鈥� On Friday, Oct. 27, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals will hear arguments on behalf of Becky Pepper-Jackson, a 13-year-old transgender girl from West Virginia, against a state law banning transgender girls from playing on girls鈥� student athletics teams.
Lawyers from the 老澳门开奖结果, the 老澳门开奖结果 of West Virginia, Lambda Legal, and Cooley LLP will argue against the law in a hearing at the Fourth Circuit courthouse in Richmond, Virginia. Audio of the hearing
鈥淲e've said all along that this law is cruel and stigmatizing, and we are looking forward to our legal team demonstrating in court that it is also unconstitutional,鈥� said Aubrey Sparks, legal director of the 老澳门开奖结果 of West Virginia. 鈥淭rans kids belong everywhere that cisgender kids belong. Becky belongs on the team playing with her friends.鈥�
鈥淏ecky is a middle school student fighting for the right to play with her friends and be treated no differently than any other girl on the field,鈥� said Joshua Block, senior staff attorney at 老澳门开奖结果鈥檚 LGBTQ & HIV Project. 鈥淪he has no athletic advantages but is still excluded by West Virginia simply for being transgender. As multiple other courts have recognized, laws categorically banning girls and women who are transgender from school sports unlawfully excludes them from a fundamental part of the educational process while doing nothing to actually promote equal athletic opportunities for other girls and women.鈥�
鈥淧articipating on her school's cross-country and track teams means everything to Becky, as her teammates are her second family,鈥� Lambda Legal Staff Attorney for Youth Sruti Swaminathan said. 鈥淭he unconscionable campaign targeting Becky is not only unconstitutional and discriminatory, it is also cruel. To expend such time and energy in order to prevent one middle school athlete from reaping the benefits of school sports cannot be a legitimate interest of the State of West Virginia."
鈥淲e are proud to stand up for Becky鈥攁nd all trans youth 鈥� who simply wanted to be treated equally and fairly under the law and participate in sports with their friends. The law and the facts strongly support treating people who are transgender fairly and equally,鈥� said Kathleen Hartnett of Cooley LLP.
In April 2021, West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice signed HB 3293 into law, barring transgender girls from participating on all girls鈥� school athletic teams, from middle school through college. In May 2021, the 老澳门开奖结果, the 老澳门开奖结果 of West Virginia, Lambda Legal, and Cooley LLP challenged the law on behalf of Becky Pepper Jackson, a now-13-year-old middle school girl who would be kicked off her middle school鈥檚 girls鈥� cross country and track and field teams if the law were enforced.
Becky鈥檚 legal team initially blocking enforcement of the law pending final resolution of the case, and in February 2023, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit blocked the state鈥檚 effort to kick Becky off the team as her legal team appealed the lower court鈥檚 subsequent ruling upholding the 2021 ban.
In March 2023, Attorney General Patrick Morrissey for an emergency ruling that would kick Becky off her middle school鈥檚 cross country and track and field team pending appeal of the lower court鈥檚 ruling. The court rejected this attempt in April 2023.
West Virginia is that have banned transgender girls from playing on girls鈥� teams in just the last three years as part of an escalating wave of state-level restrictions on the rights of transgender people. In August 2023, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld an injunction against Idaho鈥檚 ban against transgender girls playing girls鈥� sports, finding that the law likely violates the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
LGBTQ Rights
B.P.J. v. West Virginia State Board of Education
LGBTQ Rights
B.P.J. v. West Virginia State Board of Education
Learn More 老澳门开奖结果 the Issues in This Press Release
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Press ReleaseDec 2024
LGBTQ Rights
President Biden Must Veto Defense Bill Attacking Military Families with Transgender YouthPresident Biden Must Veto Defense Bill Attacking Military Families with Transgender Youth
WASHINGTON 鈥� The U.S. Senate today passed a version of the National Defense Authorization Act that would ban coverage for gender-affirming care for transgender youth whose parents are active-duty military personnel. The 老澳门开奖结果 is opposing final passage of the defense bill over the inclusion of this health care ban and calling on President Joe Biden to veto the bill. Section 708 of the NDAA would prohibit insurance coverage for 鈥渕edical interventions for the treatment of gender dysphoria鈥� such as hormone therapy and puberty-suppressant medications, which Speaker Mike Johnson says would 鈥減ermanently ban transgender medical treatment for minors.鈥� The same treatments would be covered by TRICARE for any medical purpose other than treating gender dysphoria, the clinical diagnosis for the psychological distress experienced by transgender people related to their gender identity. 鈥淏y passing this bill, the House and Senate are forcing thousands of active-duty service members to choose between their careers in the military and the future of their transgender children,鈥� said Mike Zamore, national director of policy & government affairs at the 老澳门开奖结果. 鈥淭his unconscionable and unjustifiable attack on those families stands in direct contrast to President Joe Biden鈥檚 legacy of defending the civil rights of transgender Americans 鈥� including when few in his own party showed the courage to do so. President Biden should cement his legacy by vetoing this bill and sending it back to Congress to pass without Speaker Johnson鈥檚 last minute health care ban for servicemembers鈥� kids.鈥� If signed by President Biden, this health care ban would be the first new anti-LGBTQ provision enacted by Congress and signed into law by the president since the enactment of the military鈥檚 since-repealed 鈥淒on鈥檛 Ask, Don鈥檛 Tell鈥� policy for LGBTQ servicemembers and the since-repealed federal law barring recognition of same-sex marriages known as the Defense of Marriage Act. It is unknown how many transgender youth are currently enrolled in TRICARE or how many of those enrolled are currently receiving coverage for gender-affirming care. In one 2022 analysis, 2,500 minor patients sought care for gender dysphoria through TRICARE Prime insurance at military or civilian treatment facilities in 2017, and 900 received puberty suppressants or gender-affirming hormones. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a landmark case brought by the 老澳门开奖结果, the 老澳门开奖结果 of Tennessee, Lambda Legal, and Akin Gump on behalf of three families and a medical provider challenging a Tennessee ban on gender-affirming hormonal therapies for transgender youth on the grounds the ban violates the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution. -
Press ReleaseDec 2024
LGBTQ Rights
Montana Court Blocks State From Refusing to Correct Sex Markers on Transgender People's Birth Certificates and Driver's LicensesMontana Court Blocks State From Refusing to Correct Sex Markers on Transgender People's Birth Certificates and Driver's Licenses
HELENA, Mont. 鈥� A Montana court has granted a preliminary injunction preventing the state of Montana from enforcing policies that bar transgender people from obtaining accurate sex designations on their birth certificates and driver鈥檚 licenses. After a prior restriction on amendments of birth certificates was struck down by the courts, in early 2024 the state of Montana enacted a new rule that categorically bars transgender Montanans from correcting the sex designation on their birth certificates. Around the same time, the Montana Department of Justice adopted a policy similarly restricting amendment of driver鈥檚 licenses. The plaintiffs challenged these policies in state district court, arguing that they violate various constitutional provisions, including the right to equal protection of the law. In a recent Montana Supreme Court decision, two justices concluded that discrimination on the basis of transgender status 鈥� as the state is engaging in here 鈥� is a form of sex discrimination that violates the Montana Constitution鈥檚 equal protection clause. The plaintiffs, two transgender women, are represented by the 老澳门开奖结果, the 老澳门开奖结果 of Montana, and Nixon Peabody LLP. Plaintiff Jessica Kalarchik, a veteran who served in the United States Army for 31 years, said: 鈥淎fter finally being able to live my life openly as the woman I know myself to be, I am frustrated that my birth state, Montana, wants me to carry around a birth certificate that incorrectly lists my sex as male. I live my life openly as a woman, I am treated as a woman in my daily life, and there is no reason I should be forced to carry a birth certificate that incorrectly identifies me as male. Fortunately, the court agrees that this ridiculous policy should not be in effect.鈥� 鈥淥nce again the State of Montana chose to adopt a draconian policy that is clearly intended to marginalize transgender Montanans, only for that discriminatory action to be blocked by the courts,鈥� said Akilah Deernose, executive director for the 老澳门开奖结果 of Montana. 鈥淗ere in Montana we treasure our right to privacy and to live our lives free from governmental intrusion. The State of Montana clearly has not learned any lessons from the past few years, where courts have repeatedly struck down unconstitutional laws targeting transgender Montanans.鈥� 鈥淔orcing anyone to carry documents that contradict their identity unjustly violates their rights to privacy, equal treatment, and not being compelled to convey a government message about their sex that they disagree with,鈥� said Malita Picasso, staff attorney for the 老澳门开奖结果鈥檚 LGBTQ & HIV Project. 鈥淪uch a policy marks transgender people for further mistreatment and discrimination, essentially requiring them to carry papers that out them as transgender any time they need to provide identity documents. Fortunately, the court has refused to allow the state of Montana to subvert the freedom of transgender Montanans to control their own identity as this case goes forward.鈥� In granting the plaintiffs鈥� motion for a preliminary injunction, the court held, 鈥淸i]f the challenged state actions discriminate against transgender individuals on the basis of their transgender status, they also necessarily discriminate the basis of sex.鈥� The state has the option of appealing the district court鈥檚 ruling to the Montana Supreme Court, but the underlying case will proceed in district court. A trial has not yet been scheduled. -
FloridaDec 2024
LGBTQ Rights
Keohane v. DixonKeohane v. Dixon
On September 30, 2024, the Florida Department of Corrections rescinded its policy regarding treatment of gender dysphoria, which allowed for hormone therapy when deemed medically necessary, as well as access to clothing and grooming standards that accord with one鈥檚 gender identity. Under this new policy, grooming and clothing accommodations have been stripped away, and hormone therapy is not permitted unless an exception is deemed constitutionally required. The 老澳门开奖结果 brought a class action challenging the policy. -
IdahoDec 2024
LGBTQ Rights
Robinson v. LabradorRobinson v. Labrador
Two incarcerated transgender women have sued the state of Idaho alleging that HB 688, a 2024 law barring state funding for gender-affirming medical care for transgender people, denies them access to the health care their doctors have prescribed for them and is a violation of their Eighth Amendment right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment. They represent a class of all incarcerated folks within the state of Idaho who face the loss of hormone therapy due to HB 668.