JENISON, MI (WHTC) – The American Civil Liberties Union is putting pressure on the Jenison Public School District regarding their bathroom policies.
The district currently only allows transgender students to use unisex staff bathrooms or the bathroom that matches their birth gender according to an MLive interview with Superintendent Thomas TenBrink.
ACLU senior attorney Miriam Aukerman says after hearing of a complaint of a transgender student, they are demanding for a change in the school’s policy.
“This is about boys only a boy’s bathroom. A transgender boy is a boy. A transgender girl is a girl. It’s the core of what their gender indentity is.”
Aukerman also says if can lead to health problems if policies mandate transgender students to use the bathroom of their birth gender.
“That means that they end up not using the restroom. They can’t get to class on time if they have to use a single user restroom which is often some other place in the building. They end up not using the restroom and getting urinary tract infections.”
The ACLU argues that the policy puts an unwelcome spotlight on transgender students and creates a negative stigma. They also say the district is in direct violation of the Michigan State Board of Education and Title Nine due to sex-based discrimination.
TenBrink has released a statement saying the district does not discriminate against any of its students.
