Schools
'Student A' Enters Current Legal Fray Over D211 Transgender Policy
The Fremd High School student whose case created D211's locker room protocol filed a motion Thursday to intervene in a suit to overturn it.
The Fremd High School student at the crux of Township High School District 211's transgender restroom and locker room policy has filed a motion to be party to a federal lawsuit by a conservative Christian group representing district families looking to overturn the code.
The student, identified as Student A, also is joined by her parents, the parents of two transgender students from feeder schools who will be part of the district next year and the Illinois Safe School Alliance, which helps school districts create safe policies for LGBTQ students.
A statement about Thursday's motion was released by the Illinois chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, which originally represented Student A in her original case last fall that fought for her right to use the girls locker room. The ACLU also is representing the families in this motion to intervene and fight the lawsuit.
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More Coverage on Patch
- ACLU to File Motion to Derail Lawsuit Over D211's Transgender Locker Room Policy
- 51 Families Sue Palatine District 211 Over Transgender Student's Locker Room Use
- District 211 Sticks to Agreement in Transgender Case
- District 211 Reaches Settlement With Feds in Transgender Case
- District 211: Transgender Student Not Allowed Open Acess to Locker Room
- Local Residents Sound Off on District 211 Decision
- UPDATE: District 211 Transgender Case Making National News
- Mother of Transgender Student Who Was Denied Access to Locker Room Speaks Out
- Fremd Student Starts Petition in Favor of Allowing Transgender Students Access to Locker Room
The three students and their families are filing the motion anonymously to protect their privacy, the release stated.
Find out what's happening in Palatinefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
“Our daughter’s voice, the voice of other students who are transgender in District 211 and other concerned parties need to be heard by the public and by the court in this lawsuit,” Student A's mother stated in the release.
“These students do not pose a threat simply because they use the bathroom and locker room that matches their identity,” she added. “However, if our daughter is forced into the boys’ locker room, she and the boys she is forced to change with will experience real emotion trauma.”
Earlier this month, Alliance Defending Freedom, an Arizona-based conservative Christian group, filed a lawsuit on behalf of 51 Palatine-area families against the school district and two federal agencies, claiming a 2015 agreement between those groups to allow a transgender student open access to opposite sex restrooms and locker rooms disregarded the privacy and safety of other students.
Currently, Student A is no longer changing in Fremd's girls' locker room because of the attention from the lawsuit and "the false and misleading claims made by the anti-LGBT groups," the release said. She goes to gym class in street clothes now to avoid the unwanted attention, the release added.
When asked about this situation, a D211 representative told Patch on Thursday that the district could not comment on any pending litigation or legal procedures.
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