Joe.My.God. LGBT News
From the Dallas-Fort Worth NBC affiliate:
Top Republicans in America’s largest conservative state are ready to take on the issue of transgender rights and public restrooms, as thousands of party activists gather in Dallas for the Texas GOP convention.
An Obama administration directive issued late Thursday amid a court fight between the federal government and North Carolina says public schools must permit transgender students to use bathrooms and locker rooms consistent with their gender identity.
Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick spoke to NBC 5 soon after the directive was first reported, saying, “This will be the beginning of the end of the public school system as we know it.”
Patrick compared the guidance from leaders at the departments of Education and Justice to a recent guideline from the Fort Worth school district superintendent meant to accommodate transgender students.
“President Obama, in the dark of the night – without consulting Congress, without consulting educators, without consulting parents – decides to issue an executive order, like this superintendent, forcing transgender policies on schools and on parents who clearly don’t want it,” Patrick told NBC 5.
Earlier Thursday, Patrick called on the Fort Worth superintendent to resign, and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton suggested the school district’s policies may violate Texas’ education code.