The U.S. Department of Education announced Wednesday that the California Department of Education and the California Interscholastic Federation violated the civil rights of female students on the basis of sex by allowing transgender students to compete in school sports according to their gender identity.<\/p>\n
Having concluded its investigation, the U.S. Department of Education is calling on California<\/a> to \u201cvoluntarily agree\u201d to change what it determined are \u201cunlawful practices\u201d within 10 days or risk \u201cimminent enforcement action.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAlthough Governor Gavin Newsom admitted months ago it was \u2018deeply unfair\u2019 to allow men to compete in women\u2019s sports, both the California Department of Education and the California Interscholastic Federation continued as recently as a few weeks ago to allow men to steal female athletes\u2019 well-deserved accolades and to subject them to the indignity of unfair and unsafe competitions,\u201d U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said in a statement.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Trump Administration will relentlessly enforce Title IX protections for women and girls, and our findings today make clear that California has failed to adhere to its obligations under federal law. The state must swiftly come into compliance with Title IX or face the consequences that follow.\u201d<\/p>\n California officials were not immediately available for comment.<\/p>\n Triston Ezidore, the Culver City Unified school board president, said the department\u2019s finding \u201cdoes not protect women and girls \u2014 it harms them.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBarring transgender students from participating in sports based on the president of the United States deciding who is \u2018woman enough\u2019 is both discriminatory and unjust. True protection for female athletes means fighting for fairness and inclusion, not using exclusionary definitions to marginalize vulnerable students,\u201d he said in an interview with The Times.<\/p>\n \u201cWorse still, this ruling doesn\u2019t just harm transgender youth, it degrades all female athletes by demanding that women and girls subject themselves to invasive scrutiny,\u201d he added. \u201cIt forces school staff to police and enforce a politically motivated definition of womanhood, turning our schools into gatekeepers of identity rather than safe spaces for learning and growth.\u201d<\/p>\n But Chino Valley Unified school board President Sonja Shaw, a Trump supporter running for state schools superintendent who has challenged pro-LGBTQ+ laws, hailed the department\u2019s finding as a \u201cstep towards justice.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCIF and CDE were warned. Over and over,\u201d she said. \u201cBut instead of listening, they laughed. They smirked. They mocked parents and anyone that stood for the truth and let our daughters be mocked, sidelined and erased. They handed girls over to an ideology that stole their privacy, safety and achievements. Now, they\u2019ve been federally exposed as lawbreakers.\u201d<\/p>\n The U.S. Department of Education\u2019s Office for Civil Rights opened<\/a> an investigation in February into the California Interscholastic Federation, which oversees sports at more than 1,500 high schools, after the athletic group continued its policy of allowing transgender students to compete in accordance with their gender identity.<\/p>\n Under Title IX, a landmark 1972 federal civil rights law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in educational programs that receive federal funding, schools must ensure equal opportunities for women and girls, including in athletic activities.<\/p>\n California\u2019s education code<\/a> states that students \u201cshall be permitted to participate in sex-segregated school programs and activities, including athletic teams and competitions, and use facilities consistent with his or her gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on the pupil\u2019s records.\u201d<\/p>\n In May, the U.S. Department of Justice<\/a> began an investigation into whether California, its interscholastic sports federation and the Jurupa Unified School District were violating the civil rights of female students by allowing transgender students to compete in school sports.<\/p>\n In an attempt to address the issue of female athletes losing out on awards, the California Interscholastic Federation moved forward May 27 with a plan that duplicates the awards when a transgender athlete wins a competition. <\/p>\n