The U.S. Department of Education recently proposed a rule change to Title IX, which currently provides women with equal opportunities in educational programs and activities. The proposed Biden rule would expand Title IX’s prohibition against discrimination on the basis of sex to include “discrimination on the basis of sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation, and gender identity.” Additionally, the Department’s proposed changes would undercut guaranteed protections for religious freedom, the unborn, and women.
U.S. Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL) and James Lankford (R-OH), along with 10 other Republican senators, sent a letter to U.S. Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona expressing concerns over how the proposed rule change would weaken the protection of women’s sports.
- “Among other harmful changes, the Proposed Rule expands the scope of Title IX’s prohibition against discrimination on the basis of sex to include ‘discrimination on the basis of sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation, and gender identity.’
- “Congress enacted Title IX 50 years ago to provide women with equal opportunities in educational programs and activities. The Proposed Rule’s interpretation of Title IX runs afoul of the clear parameters of the statute, as well as Congressional intent. In fact, if finalized, it would actually have the opposite effect of the law’s intent and further erode women’s equality, privacy and safety.” – Rubio, Lankford, and colleagues
Want more? Read the full letter here and here for a full list of cosigners.