More than 300 people gather in front of the Idaho Statehouse in opposition to anti-transgender legislation in February. A federal judge Thursday lifted a temporary block on an Idaho law restricting which bathrooms transgender students can use. DARIN OSWALD Idaho Statesman
A federal judge’s recent decision in Idaho has stirred the ongoing debate surrounding transgender rights. The judge has allowed a state law requiring public-school students to use the bathroom corresponding to their assigned sex at birth to take effect while permitting a legal challenge to proceed.
U.S. District Judge David Nye’s stance reflects his belief that the court should not be a policy-making entity. His decision, handed down in August, temporarily halted the law, but he now refrains from blocking it further, opting instead to continue the case.
The family of the transgender student, identified as Rebecca Roe, along with a student association, filed a lawsuit in July, contending that the state law discriminates based on gender identity and infringes on students’ right to privacy. Idaho’s law allows students to sue schools for $5,000 if they encounter a transgender student in a bathroom against the law’s provisions.
The new law mandates schools to provide a “reasonable accommodation” for transgender students who cannot or do not wish to use their assigned bathroom. The lawsuit argues that these alternative accommodations are often subpar, situated in less accessible locations, and carry a stigma for transgender students.
This issue remains contentious in federal courts, with varying interpretations of school policies regarding transgender students’ restroom use. The Richmond, Virginia-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found a Virginia school’s policy to be illegal, while the Atlanta-based 11th Circuit upheld a similar policy in a Florida school. The debate surrounding transgender rights continues to be a complex and divisive topic in the United States.
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