Federal court approves Olentangy schools' anti-harassment policy for LGBTQ+ students

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LEWIS CENTER, Ohio (WCMH) -- Federal court judges ruled in favor of a central Ohio school district last week by upholding anti-harassment policies protecting LGBTQ+ students that were challenged by a national conservative organization.

Judges on the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected on July 29 an argument by Parents Defending Education that claimed Olentangy Local School District violated First Amendment rights by barring discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. In a May 2023 complaint, the Virginia-based nonprofit cited the district's policy against misgendering, the act of referring to another person by using pronouns that do not align with their gender identity.

In a statement to NBC4, a spokesperson for Olentangy schools celebrated the court's decision and affirmed that the district is "committed to facilitating maximum learning for every student."

"The district's policies on harassment and bullying prohibit the intentional and repeated targeting of another student when it causes an intimidating, threatening, or abusive educational environment," Olentangy schools said. "We are pleased that the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals decision affirmed the constitutionality of our policies, and we remain committed to creating a safe and inclusive environment for all of our students."

The three-judge panel said Parents Defending Education hadn't convincingly argued that the policies should be blocked, and noted students who don't want to use their transgender classmates' preferred pronouns may just refer to them using first names. U.S. Circuit Judge Jane Stranch said in the 25-page majority opinion that Olentangy's ban on LGBTQ+ discrimination is comparable to common school prohibitions on racial slurs.

"Expressing distasteful views on race is different from referring to a mixed-race student as not really Black," wrote Stranch. "By the same token, discussing sex and gender identity is different using non-preferred pronouns to state that one's trans classmate is not really a girl. The district is entitled to recognize that speech about students' identities is particularly harmful."

Stranch said Olentangy's policies "and similar rules are commonly and constitutionally imposed … to protect the basic educational mission of public schools." The ruling also states, "Parents Defending Education has failed to make a clear showing that the district's prohibition on the intentional use of non-preferred pronouns unconstitutionally compels speech."

Parents Defending Education didn't respond to NBC4's request for comment but previously affirmed it believes Olentangy's student code of conduct that includes "transgender identity" as a protected group is unconstitutional. The organization is also against district policies that allegedly prohibit students from harassing or humiliating LGBTQ+ students on and off campus, and through their phones.

"The district's policies require the students to conform their speech to the district's views on gender identity," the organization argued in the original complaint, which was initially rejected by a U.S. district court in August last year. "If students voice their closely held views that sex is immutable or refer to peers with their 'unpreferred pronouns,' they would violate the district’s broadly written policies."

Olentangy is one of several central Ohio school districts that have implemented policies supporting LGBTQ+ students. Columbus City Schools, Bexley City Schools and Westerville City Schools are home to statutes that include guidelines on the use of sex-specific facilities, pronouns, records and privacy, discrimination and dress code.

Canal Winchester City Schools, Gahanna-Jefferson Local Schools and Westerville Schools feature a brief measure that states trans students are permitted "to participate in single-gender classes in a manner consistent with their gender identity." Inversely, New Albany-Plain Local School School District adopted a policy in 2022 directing staff not to ask students which pronouns align with their gender identity.