Texas AG Ken Paxton, left, and Gov. Greg Abbott continue to target trans Texans
Shortly after Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced Monday morning, April 9, that he is suing the federal government over the U.S. Department of Education’s recent updates to Title IX that explicitly include protections for sexual orientation and gender identity, Gov. Greg Abbott issued a directive to Texas public schools ordering them to ignore the new regulations. Abbott also sent a letter to President Biden condemning the new regulations.
Abbott wrote in that letter, “Title IX was written by Congress to support the advancement of women academically and athletically. The law was based on the fundamental premise that there are only two sexes — male and female. You have rewritten Title IX to force schools to treat boys as if they are girls and to accept every student’s self-declared gender identity. This ham-handed effort to impose a leftist belief onto Title IX exceeds your authority as president.”
He also informed the president that he was “instructing the Texas Education Agency to ignore your illegal dictate” because it “exceeds [the president’s] constitutional authority” and “tramples laws that I signed to protect the integrity of women’s sports by prohibiting men from competing against female athletes.”
Abbott and Paxton are well known for their attacks on transgender Texans, especially their efforts targeting trans youth. They are also well-known for flaunting their disregard for the federal law, their insistence of ignoring federal immigration law being a recent example.
LGBTQ advocates in Texas were quick to condemn both Paxton’s lawsuit and Abbott’s directive to the schools. Ricardo Martinez, CEO of Equality Texas, issued a statement Monday afternoon saying, “Paxton literally wants to delete whole groups of people from the minimum federal non-discrimination protections. Texans know better than most that this country truly is a melting pot. Every day we come into contact with people who live, work and pray differently than we do. Civil rights laws create a baseline of respect for our fellow Texans that allows us to peacefully exist with our neighbors.”
He continued, “Paxton and Abbot want to ignore and undermine federal protections designed to safeguard students and families, including LGBTQIA+ students, survivors of sexual assault and pregnant students. These kids deserve safe spaces and support.”
Texas Freedom Network Deputy Director Carisa Lopez said Abbott’s directive to the schools “undermines protections for LGBTQIA+ students and uses our public schools as a political battleground. … It’s a shame to all Texans to see our attorney general sue the Biden administration for expanded protections under Title IX.”
Lopez added, “Paxton claims he is suing to ‘protect women,’ yet he has actively worked to strip women of their reproductive freedoms and their right to make personal medical decisions about their own bodies. Paxton’s hypocritical actions demonstrate his disregard for women’s equality and autonomy. True advocacy for women’s rights means defending their access to healthcare, not using Title IX as an excuse to discriminate against LGBTQIA+ students.”
Schools that refuse to follow Department of Education regulations risk losing federal funding.
— Tammye Nash
