Advocates for Gender Justice, Civil Rights, and Student Rights Respond to Biden Administration's Finalization of New Title IX Rule

Advocates for Gender Justice, Civil Rights, and Student Rights Respond to Biden Administration’s Finalization of New Title IX Rule

Washington, DC — April 19, 2024 — Today, the U.S. Department of Education finalized a range of critical updates to its regulations interpreting and enforcing Title IX, restoring and reinforcing vital civil rights protections for all students to access school spaces and programs free from sex discrimination.

In response, a coalition comprising over 20 organizations, including the National Women’s Law Center, Know Your IX (a project of Advocates for Youth), National Center for Transgender Equality, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, AAUW, Human Rights Campaign, PFLAG National, and GLSEN, issued the following statement:

“Students across races, places, and genders prove every day that they can do great things, especially when they can attend school without fear of harassment or discrimination. We commend the Biden administration for listening to the expert voices of students, advocates, parents, educators, and researchers, and for delivering on their commitment to clarify Title IX’s vital civil rights protections. By rescinding the Trump administration’s harmful and restrictive sex harassment rule, and making protections clearer for survivors, pregnant and parenting students, and LGBTQIA+ students, this rule will ensure every student has the freedom to learn and to be themselves. We look forward to working with the Biden administration and school administrators to ensure the rule is implemented.

“Yet, as we celebrate this milestone, we recognize that this regulation does not go far enough in making the law’s protections clear for all student athletes. Currently, 37 percent of transgender, nonbinary, and intersex youth live in states with laws that ban them from participating in sports consistent with their gender identity. As with all students, Title IX protects transgender, nonbinary, and intersex student athletes from discriminatory policies, as the Biden administration has already argued in court and a federal appeals court upheld just this week.

“We call on President Biden and his administration to finish the job by providing further clarification for inclusive protections in athletics and robustly enforcing Title IX to ensure all students, including transgender, nonbinary, and intersex student athletes, realize the law’s full protections — because all students deserve the freedom to be themselves, to learn and to do their best at school.”

This joint statement is on behalf of the following organizations: