California judge issues order blocking school district’s transgender outing policy
A state judge ordered the Chino Valley Unified School District not to enact its policy of outing transgender students to their parents while a legal challenge to the regulation is pending.
San Bernardino Superior Court Judge Michael Sachs issued his preliminary injunction Thursday.
The decision was hailed by advocates, including Kristi Hirst, co-founder of Our Schools USA, who said in a statement that the ruling is a win for students, parents and teachers.
“It’s embarrassing that this school board chooses to ignore the harm they are causing in Chino and in communities throughout California in order to pursue a political crusade,” Hirst said.
Chino Valley was the first California school district to adopt a policy that forces teachers and other school staff to inform parents if a child is transgender or gender-nonconforming. The proposal was modeled after a California bill that would have imposed such a policy on every school in the state. That bill died in the Legislature.
Since Chino Valley first considered the proposal last summer, several other school districts with conservative-controlled boards have enacted similar policies, including Rocklin Unified School District.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta sued Chino Valley in August, after warning the district not to proceed with adopting the policy. Bonta’s office did not respond to The Bee’s request for comment by deadline.
According to Courthouse News Service, at a hearing Thursday Sachs questioned the district’s statement that its policy is intended to create a supportive environment.
“On the one hand, you have this policy that is expressed ... as to bring the family, the school, the students together so that the students and parents have an avenue to address the mental health concerns and other concerns regarding their children,” Sachs said, “On the other hand, are board members at an open meeting voicing their opinions that seem to counter the stated purpose of the policy.”
The judge said that while some transgender youths feel safe discussing their gender identity with their parents, others do not, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
“My job as a judge is to have their backs,” he said, according to the Chronicle.
Chino Valley Unified School District Board President Sonja Shaw, who has championed the policy across the state, did not respond to The Bee’s request for comment by deadline.
