Last Friday, two New Hampshire teenagers – soccer players who have lived as girls since childhood – sued the state of New Hampshire for enacting a transgender sports ban. The lawsuit was filed with the support of the ACLU.
The lawsuit alleges that the ban on transgender participation in girls’ sports violates the equal treatment principle of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and Title IX, the 1972 amendment that also guarantees equal treatment in education regardless of gender.
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The lawsuit also states that in addition to seeking an injunction against the law to allow the girls to return to playing sports, the plaintiffs also intend to seek an injunction against the defendants.
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Chris Erchull, senior attorney at GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD), said in a statement, “Sports are a pillar of education in New Hampshire’s public schools because physical activity in a team environment provides countless benefits, including physical and mental health, leadership skills, and social development. New Hampshire cannot justify singling out transgender girls to deprive them of important educational benefits available to other students.”
HB 1205 was signed into law last month by Gov. Chris Sununu (R). The bill bans transgender girls from participating on girls’ sports teams throughout high school. It was signed the same day along with two other anti-trans bills. A fourth bill, which would have repealed the state’s anti-discrimination measures for transgender people, was vetoed by the governor.
The lawsuit names the commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Education, members of the New Hampshire Board of Education, and members of the girls’ high school board of education as defendants. The plaintiffs are represented by Chris Erchull and Ben Klein of GLAD, Henry Klementowicz and Gilles Bissonnette of the ACLU of New Hampshire, and Louis Lobel, Kevin DeJong and Elaine Blais of Goodwin.
Henry Klementowicz, deputy legal director of the ACLU of New Hampshire, said in a statement: “HB 1205 stigmatizes and discriminates against transgender girls, telling them they do not deserve the same educational opportunities as other girls in public schools. All students are more successful in school when they have access to resources that improve their mental, emotional and physical health, and (the girls) deserve the same access.”
