Federal judge blocks Biden admin directives on transgender school bathrooms and athletes

(Image credit: Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)

A federal judge has temporarily blocked a Biden administration directive that allowed students to use school bathrooms and play on school sports teams that matched their gender identities.

Oklahoma Attorney General John O'Connor, one of the plaintiffs, said in a statement Saturday the ruling was "a major victory for women's sports and for the privacy and safety of girls and women."

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

In an opinion issued Friday, Atchley agreed that the states "cannot continue regulating pursuant to their state laws while simultaneously complying with Defendants' guidance." Atchley also rejected the administration's attempt to justify the directive on the basis of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Bostock v. Clayton County (2019), which applied the workplace discrimination protections included in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to sexual orientation and gender identity.

The Supreme Court, Atchley wrote, "explicitly refused to decide whether 'sex-segregated bathrooms, locker rooms, and dress codes' violate Title VII."

Explore More

Grayson Quay was the weekend editor at TheWeek.com. His writing has also been published in National Review, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Modern Age, The American Conservative, The Spectator World, and other outlets. Grayson earned his M.A. from Georgetown University in 2019.