Local Virginia School Board Rejects Bathroom Rights for Trans Students

Transgender students in Gloucester County, Va., will have to use single-stall restrooms or restrooms corresponding with the gender they were assigned at birth.

Tuesday night the Gloucester County School Board voted 6-1 to pass the measure restricting bathroom usage for transgender students. Thirty people spoke at the meeting, voicing concerns from both sides of the issue.

Carla Hook, a member of the school board, said this was not a matter of civil rights, according to Newport News paper the Daily Press.

"Perhaps, one thing I should talk about is what this is not about tonight, because we've talked a lot about different issues," Hook said during the meeting. "The first thing is that I don't think this issue implicates anyone's civil rights because, let me be clear, I don't think we have to vote on each other's civil rights. That's how important they are."

Gavin Grimm, a 10th-grader at Gloucester High School who identifies as a trans male, brought the complaint to the school board.

"While I'm disappointed, I'm very glad that the public has spoken," Grimm told WAVY TV. "I'm glad the school board has spoken, and my fight is not over because of the decision today. I am not the last transgender student who will ever be at Gloucester High School. I'm not the first who has ever been."

The Minnesota State High School League voted last week to allow transgender students to participate in sports according to the gender with which they identify. The MSHSL passed the policy to be in compliance with the United States Department of Education's Title IX. A revision to the policy required protection from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. The issue of which bathrooms and locker rooms trans athletes should use is still being debated.

Watch the video of the school board debate below.