The Supreme Court of the United States is set to make a decision on the socially divisive issue of bathroom policy involving transgender rights.
The outcome of this deliberation is anticipated to affect not only the parties of the case, but also those fighting the same battles across the country.
The discrimination case, which is set to be argued and decided before the end of June 2017, will mark the first time for the U.S. Supreme Court to tackle the issues linked to transgender rights. It involves Gavin Grimm, a 17-year-old transgender student, who sued the Gloucester County School Board in 2015 in an effort to be granted the right to use the boys’ bathroom in his high school.
“The Supreme Court’s ultimate decision in this case will have a profound impact on transgender youth across the country,” Human Rights Campaign Legal Director Sarah Warbelow said in a press release. She added, “While hundreds of school districts nationwide are already respecting the civil rights of their transgender students, some are unconscionably discriminating against students like Gavin. Every day that discrimination is allowed to continue, transgender students are put at even greater risk of harm. No young person should wake up in the morning fearful of bullying or discrimination during the school day ahead.”
Grimm, who was born biologically female, came out to his family in his freshman year. Prior to enrolling for his sophomore year in the fall of 2014, his parents sought the support of the high school principal and guidance counselor regarding his situation. Both school personnel were understanding of Grimm. At the time, the 17-year-old already had his name legally changed. He had also been living as a male in basically all aspects of his life.
Circumstances took a negative turn when some parents and members of the school board started to complain about Grimm’s use of the boys’ bathroom. Due to the issues they raised, he was forced to either use the nurse’s bathroom or hold in his need to urinate until he was off the campus. When Grimm and his family decided to fight back to afford him the right to use the boys’ bathroom, the school board decided to call for a public forum to discuss the matter.
Grimm’s condition was discussed thoroughly during the public forum, with some speakers who are against his use of the boys’ bathroom calling him “young lady” and “girl” in their speeches. At times, he was referred to as a “freak” due to his condition. In the end, the school board decided to deny Grimm’s request to use the boys’ bathroom. He then sued them for discrimination.
The lower court earlier decided against Grimm, but a federal court decision sided with the 17-year-old. In the ruling of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, the appeals court applied Title IX in justifying its decision. According to the federal court, transgender students must be allowed to utilize the sex segregated facilities that matched their gender identity. The school board appealed the decision and the U.S. Supreme Court now takes over.
“We’re prepared to make our case to the court and to make sure the Supreme Court and people in general see Gavin as who he is and see trans kids across the country for who they are,” Grimm’s lawyer, Joshua Block of the American Civil Liberties Union, said in the Washington Post.
At this point, the Supreme Court ordered that the school board’s earlier policy of not allowing Grimm to use the boys’ bathroom must be reinstated. This would serve to preserve the status quo prior to the result of their deliberation regarding the case.