North Dakota joins lawsuit over Title IX transgender protections

Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin announces a federal lawsuit against a new Title IX rule that protects transgender students from discrimination in school-related activities. With him at a Tuesday, May 7, 2024, press conference in Little Rock are, left to right, Amelia Ford, a 15-year-old basketball player; Arkansas Solicitor General Nicholas Bronni; and Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey. (Mary Hennigan/Arkansas Advocate)

North Dakota joined a lawsuit filed by Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin on Tuesday against the U.S. Department of Education’s change to Title IX that codifies protections for LGBTQ+ students.

The federal rule, announced in April, protects students and school employees from sex-based discrimination, requires schools to offer support for people who make complaints, sets guidelines for schools and includes transgender students in the law’s protections. It is expected to go into effect on Aug. 1.

The 60-page lawsuit alleges the education department has exceeded its authority by rewriting the statute. It also claims the rule violates the First Amendment, is arbitrary and capricious by going against “decades” of understanding of Title IX and presents “an actual controversy” by redefining “sex” to include gender identity.

The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, seeks to ultimately stop the federal rule’s effective date.

North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley speaks from the podium during the 2024 NDGOP Convention at Sanford Health Athletic Complex in Fargo on April 6, 2024. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)

North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley said the actions of the Biden administration “very obviously exceeds what their authority is under the law and in fact changes the promise of Title IX, which was put in place in 1973 by the elected Congress.”

“That’s not the way our system works,” he said of the Biden administrative rules.

The ACLU of North Dakota condemned the lawsuit Tuesday.

“This lawsuit is little more than political grandstanding and is just another attempt to erase transgender people from society while stirring up support from their base of anti-trans activists with fear-mongering tactics and discriminatory rhetoric that harm some of the most vulnerable people in our state,” said Cody Schuler, ACLU of North Dakota advocacy manager.

Though Title IX applies beyond school athletics, Griffin and Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey largely focused on transgender students joining girls sports teams during a Tuesday press conference in Little Rock.

Amelia Ford, a 15-year-old sophomore at Brookland High School near Jonesboro, and her mother, Sara, are named plaintiffs in the lawsuit and attended the press conference.

Amelia Ford, a basketball player, said she’s worked hard to earn her spot on the team, and doesn’t want that opportunity taken away from her. She also expressed concerns about the possibility of having “a boy who identifies as a girl” in her bathroom, locker room or hotel room during overnight sports trips.

“You don’t just become a girl by what you feel or by what you think,” Ford said. “The government should not force us to disregard common sense and reality.”

The lawsuit mentions Ford’s faith several times and states it would violate her Christian beliefs to refer to someone using pronouns that don’t align with the person’s biological sex.

Bailey referred to the Title IX rule as being “in favor of a radical transgender ideology,” and Griffin seemed baffled by the idea of such a proposed change.

“For a legal suit, it can’t just be ridiculous, nonsensical, hard to believe, outrageous — there has to be a legal basis,” said Griffin, who also added that he thinks “nationally, a vast majority of people think this whole thing is nonsensical.”

Asked whether he saw the lawsuit as harmful to transgender students, Griffin said, “No, I see it as following the law.”

Other states involved in the lawsuit are Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota. More than a dozen other states have also filed suit against Title IX in their own federal courts, and more are expected.

The lawsuit says the Biden administration rule interferes with states’ authority over education in their states and their democratically enacted laws.

It lists three North Dakota laws approved in 2023: a prohibition on transgender girls and women from joining female sports teams in K-12 and college; a requirement that a government entity may not adopt a policy requiring or prohibiting an employee’s use of an individual’s preferred pronoun in work settings; and legislation requiring public universities to have dormitory restrooms and showers exclusively for males and exclusively for females.

A news release from Wrigley’s office said the Biden rule undermines safety and privacy and will rob young female athletes from opportunities.

Schuler said transgender students in North Dakota “deserve all the benefits that come with participating in sports.”

“They also deserve joy, opportunity and protection, not more bullying from our elected officials,” Schuler said.

During the press conference in Arkansas, Griffin was unable to give any examples of transgender girls joining girls sports teams in Arkansas, but he said there was “no obligation to sit around and wait until the examples pile up.”

The odds of those examples piling up are slim, said Tien Estell, a policy director for Intransitive, an organization that aims to advance protections for trans Arkansans.

“We’re in contact with a lot of trans youth,” Estell said. “And a few of them, yeah, they want to be on the sports team — but most of them are just worried about not being bullied at school.”

North Dakota Monitor reporter Mary Steurer contributed to this report.

This story has been updated to correct the court district where the lawsuit was filed.

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