Trump Administration Proposed Rules Give Schools a Blank Check to Discriminate, says NWLC

Media Contact:
Gillian Branstetter
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(Washington, D.C.) Today, the Trump Administration published eight proposed rules that would make it easier for institutions that get federal funding to discriminate. This includes a rule that would expand an exemption for religious schools under Title IX, the law that protects students from sex discrimination in education.

The proposed rule seeks to dramatically expand which schools can discriminate based on sex while receiving federal funding, with potentially devastating consequences for students. Under these rules, for example, a school may claim a religious exemption to expel students for using birth control, getting an abortion, being LGBTQ, or parenting a child outside of marriage, simply for a school’s “moral beliefs and practices,” even if those moral beliefs have no connection with religion.

The following is a statement by Fatima Goss Graves, president and CEO of the National Women’s Law Center (NWLC):

“The Trump Administration continues its vicious attacks on our rights, using religion as a license to discriminate –this time targeting students. Instead of addressing the urgent problem of sex discrimination in schools and seeking to protect students, the administration wants to leave students less safe and make it more difficult for them to learn and succeed. Students who face harassment deserve far better. Women and girls, LGBTQ students, pregnant or parenting students, and students who make decisions about their reproductive health deserve far better. These rules violate Title IX, and we will fight them.”