WASHINGTON, D.C. — Equality California, the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ+ civil rights organization, issued the following statement from Executive Director Tony Hoang in response to the Trump Administration’s investigation into California’s protections for LGBTQ+ students against forced outing policies:
“Instead of addressing the slumping economy or rising cost of healthcare, Donald Trump and his administration are continuing to waste taxpayer dollars attacking LGBTQ+ youth. This time, they are wasting Department of Education resources — from the very agency they’ve vowed to dismantle — by launching a politically motivated investigation into California for protecting LGBTQ+ students, especially transgender and nonbinary students, from being forcibly outed, regardless of the student’s safety. California’s laws don’t keep parents in the dark—they simply prevent extremist school boards from passing policies that target transgender youth and intrude into the parent-child relationship. LGBTQ+ youth and their families deserve to have sensitive conversations on their own terms and in a way that ensures students feel safe and supported at school. That’s why Equality California proudly supported and partnered with the California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus to pass the SAFETY Act last year. This legislation strengthened protections against the forced outing of LGBTQ+ students in schools, provides critical support and resources to help parents and families work toward acceptance on their own terms and ensures educators are protected from retaliation when they create safe, inclusive learning environments. Now, the Trump Administration is threatening to withhold critical federal education funding—including over $2 billion annually meant to help students from low-income families and $1.3 billion for students with disabilities—just to punish California for upholding the rights and dignity of LGBTQ+ youth. It is shameful that they would rather see families struggle and students with disabilities go without resources than uphold the basic rights of students. We will continue to stand with LGBTQ+ youth, their families, and their teachers— and we won’t back down.”
“Instead of addressing the slumping economy or rising cost of healthcare, Donald Trump and his administration are continuing to waste taxpayer dollars attacking LGBTQ+ youth. This time, they are wasting Department of Education resources — from the very agency they’ve vowed to dismantle — by launching a politically motivated investigation into California for protecting LGBTQ+ students, especially transgender and nonbinary students, from being forcibly outed, regardless of the student’s safety.
California’s laws don’t keep parents in the dark—they simply prevent extremist school boards from passing policies that target transgender youth and intrude into the parent-child relationship. LGBTQ+ youth and their families deserve to have sensitive conversations on their own terms and in a way that ensures students feel safe and supported at school.
That’s why Equality California proudly supported and partnered with the California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus to pass the SAFETY Act last year. This legislation strengthened protections against the forced outing of LGBTQ+ students in schools, provides critical support and resources to help parents and families work toward acceptance on their own terms and ensures educators are protected from retaliation when they create safe, inclusive learning environments.
Now, the Trump Administration is threatening to withhold critical federal education funding—including over $2 billion annually meant to help students from low-income families and $1.3 billion for students with disabilities—just to punish California for upholding the rights and dignity of LGBTQ+ youth. It is shameful that they would rather see families struggle and students with disabilities go without resources than uphold the basic rights of students.
We will continue to stand with LGBTQ+ youth, their families, and their teachers— and we won’t back down.”
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Equality California is the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ civil rights organization. We bring the voices of LGBTQ people and allies to institutions of power in California and across the United States, striving to create a world that is healthy, just, and fully equal for all LGBTQ people. We advance civil rights and social justice by inspiring, advocating and mobilizing through an inclusive movement that works tirelessly on behalf of those we serve. www.eqca.org
