New York City has initiated legal action against the Trump administration regarding its move to retract $47 million in federal funding, a decision linked to the transgender policies of public schools.
The lawsuit, filed on Thursday, asserts that the U.S. Department of Education’s rationale for withdrawing the promised funding is a misinterpretation of civil rights legislation.
In a letter sent last month, federal education officials claimed that the policies in New York City schools concerning transgender student access to bathrooms were violating Title IX’s sex-discrimination laws, threatening to cut funding unless changes were made to these long-standing policies.
However, the lawsuit highlights that federal authorities, including during the initial Trump administration, had previously confirmed that the City’s Department of Education was compliant with sex discrimination regulations.
The recent stance from the federal government is described in the suit as “a blatant attempt” to bypass the appropriate protocols in making decisions that impact approximately 7,700 students.
Moreover, any alterations to current policies would breach both state and local mandates which require public schools to permit bathroom access in accordance with students’ gender identity, according to the city’s claim.
The lawsuit argues that the abrupt change by the Department reflects a political agenda that prioritizes politics over the educational needs of public schools, undermining previously accepted interpretations of Title IX.
Filed in federal court in Brooklyn, the complaint seeks to temporarily prevent the cuts in funding while legal proceedings unfold.
Schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos stated that the lawsuit represents a defense against the U.S. Department of Education’s aggression towards the city’s magnet program and its support for transgender and gender expansive students.
<pThe city's chief legal officer, Muriel Goode-Trufant, claimed that Trump administration officials are attempting to unlawfully pressure New York City Public Schools into altering its policies.
Meanwhile, Mayor Eric Adams was not featured in the press release announcing the lawsuit and has publicly expressed skepticism about bathroom policies, stating on the day the demand letter was issued that “I’m not for boys going into the same bathroom with little girls.”
Adams further noted, “I’m not quite sure why people think it’s all right for a young man in high school to go into a shower where young girls are,” speaking to reporters at a September event.
“Mayor Adams will always stand up for our city’s one million public school students, regardless of the circumstances,” a spokesperson for City Hall relayed to The Post.
Despite lacking a direct quote in the lawsuit announcement, Adams subsequently posted on social media expressing support for the legal action. He stated, “The federal government is demanding our @NYCSchools do something they CANNOT do, break state and local laws.”
