RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Virginia is suing the Virginia Department of Education on behalf of two transgender students living in the Commonwealth.
A spokesperson for the ACLU claimed the students have been harmed by Virginia Department of Education’s “2023 Model Policies” and has called on the courts to get rid of them.
One of the students in the lawsuits lives in Hanover County, whose school district has implemented its own policies regarding the treatment of transgender students and was previously sued by the ACLU of Virginia in 2022.
The original policies were adopted in 2021 under previous Virginia Governor Ralph Northam and revised under current Governor Glenn Youngkin, changing how school districts treat transgender and nonbinary students.
The executive director of Equality Virginia, Narissa Rahaman, said the group applauds the ACLU for challenging the policies.
“The 2023 model policies are not evidence-based, you know, they don’t take into consideration all of the data and research that exists out there to create safe and affirming learning environment for students,” Rahaman said.
According to the ACLU, one student in one of the lawsuits, referred to as “Lily Doe,” is a middle school student in Hanover County who is not allowed to participate in a girls’ sports team, according to the organization.
Though Lily successfully qualified during tryouts and her parents provided documents that established her eligibility, the school board voted unanimously to exclude her from the team, citing Virginia Department of Education’s 2023 model policies, the ACLU said.
According to the “Statutory Authority and Requirements” section of the department’s model policies, the Virginia Department of Education is required to develop and make available policies regarding “student participation in sex-specific school activities, events and use of school facilities.”
However, the policies state that “activities and events do not include athletics.”
Youngkin’s office has not responded to a request for comment on the lawsuits. However, when 8News questioned him about the policies last year, he said it was all part of making sure parents have a say.
“In difficult circumstances, let’s go to families first,” Youngkin said in July 2023. “The children belong to parents, not to politicians, bureaucrats and administrators — and not even the teachers that are doing their best here.”
When asked for comment, a spokesperson for Hanover County Public Schools said, “the lawsuit has been filed against the Virginia Department of Education, not Hanover County Public Schools or the Hanover County School Board. Therefore, it is not appropriate for us to comment on this pending litigation.”
A Virginia Department of Education spokesperson also told 8News the department had not yet received copies of the lawsuits and could not discuss ongoing litigation.
