SUN PRAIRIE, WISCONSIN: A trans student from a Wisconsin high school allegedly "exposed their male genitalia" to four freshmen girls in the locker room showers following a swim class. Now, a law group, the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL) has claimed Sun Prairie Area School District provided an "inadequate response" to the alleged incident in March. It said Sun Prairie East High School administrators "failed to comply with basic protections afforded by federal law following a 'violation of girls’ locker room privacy."
"The girls were caught off guard and shocked, closed their eyes, and tried to hurry up and leave the showers as quickly as possible," the complaint said according to Daily Mail. This news marks another incident over the use of high school bathrooms and locker rooms by transgender students, following incidents in Florida, Iowa, and Ontario, Canada. The high school said in a letter sent to parents on Friday, April 21, "The District had previously addressed this incident when it was brought to our attention."
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The complaint claims that on March 3, "four freshman girls participated in a swim unit as part of their first-hour physical-education class. After the lesson, the girls entered the women's athletic locker room to shower and change for class." An 18-year-old student, who 'identifies as transgender' entered the shower as they began to shower in their swimsuits and said "I'm trans, by the way." The student then allegedly took off clothes and "exposed male genitalia to the four girls in the shower."
Deputy Counsel issues a statement
Deputy Counsel Dan Lennington told Wisconsin Right Now that the girls were 14 years old. "These are 14-year-old girls, this is an 18-year-old male. We have multiple sources saying this male is 18. The school district has not denied he was 18 when this happened." The law firm claims school district administrators "failed to comply with basic protections afforded by federal law" following reports to the administration and communications from parents.
It wrote, "Under federal law, the incident should have been reported to the Title IX coordinator, who should have then contacted the girls, offered supportive measures, and provided them an opportunity to file a complaint." Title IX is a federal civil rights law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or any other education program.
The school principal apologized via email
As per the complaint, the school principal Renee Colman apologized via email on April 10 to a parent "for the incident that occurred" and reiterated that the situation the girls experienced "should not have happened." It claims Colman wrote that "we will continue to work to ensure no one has a similar experience." The principal also emailed one parent a copy of a "Restroom and Locker Room Accessibility Guidance."
What does the guidance state?
"A student who is transgender, nonbinary, or gender expansive will be permitted to access the men's/women's segregated restrooms in accordance with the student’s gender identity that the student regularly asserts at school and in other social environments," the guidance states. "If a transgender student makes any request regarding the use of locker rooms or any similar type of changing area, the request shall be assessed on a case-by-case basis with the goals of: (a) facilitating the transgender student's access to the District's physical education curriculum and other relevant programs; (b) ensuring adequate student privacy and safety; and (c) minimizing stigmatization of the transgender student."
The incident caused a lot of chatter on social media platforms, with the gender debate flaring up again as well as some expressed their disgust at the situation. One social media user said: "This is a pitiful shame." Another shared, "The parents of those girls should sue the pants off that school district!!." Another user refused to address the trans woman's pronouns and said, "These were 14 year old females,any other guy would find himself locked up behind bars facing some serious jail time,this guy should not be any different lock him up and throw away the key."
This is a pitiful shame
— Thiscountryisgoingtothedogs (@WilliamMinelli) April 21, 2023
The parents of those girls should sue the pants off that school district!!
— Michael Sunseri (@sunserim2) April 21, 2023
These were 14 year old females,any other guy would find himself locked up behind bars facing some serious jail time,this guy should not be any different lock him up and throw away the key
— George Ronald Anderson Jr. (@GeorgeRonaldAn2) April 21, 2023
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