Winneconne, 3 other Wisconsin schools receive federal complaints over gender identity policies

LGBTQ+ advocacy groups Fair Wisconsin and GSAFE filed a federal civil rights complaint against the Winneconne Community School District on Tuesday, claiming it violated federal law by removing gender identity from its anti-discrimination policy last month .

According to the groups' press release, complaints were filed with the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights against three Wisconsin schools: the Winneconne Community School District, the School District of Abbotsford, Muskego-Norway School District and Hartford Union High School District.

What is the civil rights complaint against Winneconne and other schools?

These districts' school boards have fostered a "hostile environment" by eliminating or excluding gender identity from their anti-discrimination policies, which is in violation of the federal civil rights law Title IX, said Abigail Swetz, executive director of Fair Wisconsin.

“That is an unconscionable action for duly elected leaders entrusted with the education and safety of our children to take, and we are here to say it is beyond unacceptable – it is discriminatory," Swetz said in the release.

The new complaints come after GSAFE and Fair Wisconsin filed a similar one against the Kettle Moraine School District in September, also alleging Title IX violations.

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction states that creating a safe environment for LGBTQ+ students is essential for their educational success . Research also suggests that states that enact laws targeting transgender people see increased suicide attempts among transgender and non-binary youth after.

RELATED: Eric Hovde said trans youths have highest rate of suicide, driven by regret. Not true.

How does Title IX protect trans students?

Signed into law in 1972, Title IX bans discrimination against students and staff in federally funded education programs on the basis of sex. The law was updated by the Biden administration this year to include gender identity and sexual orientation.

The self-described parental rights group Moms for Liberty sued over the updated Title IX regulations earlier this year, claiming that including gender identity would unconstitutionally alter the definition of sex. This resulted in a temporary injunction that blocks the U.S. Department of Education from enforcing the new rules in schools that enroll children of Moms for Liberty members.

Regardless, Wisconsin school districts are still required to include transgender students in Title IX protections, according to legal experts.

That's because the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin, has upheld in past rulings that Title IX applies to gender identity, even before the Biden administration's updated rules.

For example, a transgender student sued the Kenosha Unified School District after it banned him from using the boys' restrooms. The court decided in his favor in 2017, ruling that Title IX protects transgender students from discrimination.

While the lawsuit over Biden's new Title IX rules plays out, the U.S. Department of Education is temporarily blocked from enforcing Title IX in certain schools. However, GSAFE and Fair Wisconsin's press release said its complaints are against "school districts, as separate entities."

"The actions by these school boards are fostering hostile environments at the district level," the release said.

What's next regarding these LGBTQ+ complaints?

The advocacy groups' release said they plan to file more complaints. They're encouraging people to report unsafe learning environments for transgender and nonbinary students by contacting testimony@fairwisconsin.com or 608-441-0143.

Quinn Clark is a Public Investigator reporter. She can be emailed at QClark@gannett.com . Follow her on Twitter at @Quinn_A_Clark .

This article originally appeared on Oshkosh Northwestern: Winneconne, 3 other Wisconsin schools receive federal complaints over gender identity policies