Transgender students have lost the automatic right to use bathrooms that match their gender identity after the Trump administration waded into the controversial issue by rescinding Obama-era directives.
The Department of Justice and Department of Education on Wednesday told schools to ignore two guidelines issued by the Obama administration which had ruled that federal laws banning discrimination in sports also applied to transgender students. The move marked the first time that the Trump administration had weighed in on the “culture wars” that underscore the deep social fissures across America.
Jeff Sessions, attorney-general, said the Obama-era directives “did not contain sufficient legal analysis or explain how the interpretation was consistent with the language” of the anti-discrimination laws. The justice and education departments said they had “given rise to significant litigation regarding school restrooms and locker rooms” and that states and school districts had the “primary role” in establishing education policy.