Litigating equality

Boyertown, PA. It's not too far from Philadelphia, located between Amityville and Congo on Ironstone Creek in Berks County.

It is the site of the most recent attack by the so-called Alliance Defending Freedom on equal treatment of transgender students in our schools.

ADF is claiming that

Boyertown School District’s bathroom policy constitutes sexual harassment and violates personal privacy.

ADF is representing a Boyertown student who alleges that being in the same locker room as a transgender student transitioning from female to male brought him "immediate confusion, humiliation, and loss of dignity.

Apparently this snowflake had been living in a cave prior to this encounter.

On complaining to school officials, the plaintiff was told to be tolerant. This he could not do. So off to court we go.

The ACLU filed a motion yesterday defending the Boyertown Area School District's policy of treating students according to their gender identity.

The ACLU’s action was filed on behalf of Aidan DeStefano, a student at Boyertown Area Senior High who is transgender, and the Pennsylvania Youth Congress, a coalition of LGBTQ youth leaders and youth organizations. One of the organizations is the Boyertown Gay-Straight Alliance, whose members include transgender students who would be harmed by the lawsuit.

Transgender students just want what everyone else wants, to be accepted for who we are. Reversing the practices that have allowed me and other trans kids to thrive at school would be devastating.

--DeStefano

Schools that foster inclusive environments for all students, including transgender youth, should be commended, not sued.

--Jason Landau Goodman, Pennsylvania Youth Congress

The lawsuit against the school district was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania by a pair of conservative legal organizations, the Alliance Defending Freedom and Independence Law Center. This case is similar to lawsuits filed by those organizations around the country that seek to exclude transgender students from locker rooms and restrooms that match their gender identity.

It’s important that trans students are given the opportunity to defend themselves against these shameful attempts to isolate and stigmatize them. Schools can and should provide extra privacy protections or private restroom or changing areas for any student who requests it. But no student has a right to demand that transgender students be segregated from their peers.

--Leslie Cooper, ACLU

The Boyertown Area School District did the right thing in affirming and respecting their students’ gender identity. To foster a positive learning environment, students need an atmosphere that is supportive and respectful of who they are. Boyertown did that and we intend to defend that practice in the interests of our clients.

--Reggie Shuford, ACLU of Pennsylvania

The motion to intervene is here.

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