Federal complaint accuses Kettle Moraine School District of violating discrimination rules

Two Wisconsin LGBTQ+ advocacy groups have filed a federal complaint accusing a Waukesha County school district of violating federal nondiscrimination protections.

The two organizations, Fair Wisconsin and GSAFE, accuse the Kettle Moraine School District’s elected school board of fostering a “hostile environment” for transgender and nonbinary students in violation of federal Title IX regulations barring sex discrimination.

The groups filed a joint complaint on Sept. 9 with the federal Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights in support of trans and nonbinary students, teachers, staff and families in the school district, located in Wales, west of Milwaukee, according to a press release.

Fair Wisconsin is an LGBTQ+ civil rights and political advocacy organization, while GSAFE is an LGBTQ+ education advocacy organization. The two filed their complaint in coordination with GLSEN, a national advocacy organization for LGBTQ+ rights in K-12 schools.

In the complaint, the organizations charge that the alleged hostile environment created by the Kettle Moraine school board stems from public statements in board meetings and “the absence of any action taken to protect trans and nonbinary students from discrimination when it has been brought to the board’s attention in meetings.”

New Title IX rules issued by President Joe Biden’s administration that went into effect on Aug. 1 make clear that discrimination on the basis of gender identity is now included in the existing federal prohibition on sex-based discrimination in publicly funded education.

In a statement, the Kettle Moraine School District told the Wisconsin Independent that it can’t enforce the new rules due to an injunction in a lawsuit filed by Moms for Liberty, Young America’s Foundation and Female Athletes United that blocks such enforcement.

“We were informed Monday that a complaint has been filed with the Office of Civil Rights. We have yet to hear from the OCR,” the district said. “The Kettle Moraine School District supports all students and families and does not tolerate bullying. The Final Rule of Title IX was not reviewed as the district is enjoined in the summary judgment of Kansas v. US Dept of Education.”

The lawsuit from Moms for Liberty and aligned groups is just one of several targeting the Biden administration’s new Title IX rules and their protections for transgender students. As of August, federal judges had issued six injunctions blocking the rules from taking effect, according to Inside Higher Ed.

In the Moms for Liberty case, U.S. District Judge John Broomes directed the plaintiff groups to submit a list of the specific schools their members attend so that he could issue a sweeping injunction blocking them from enforcing the Title IX rules, according to the Associated Press.

In order to expand the injunction to other schools, Moms for Liberty co-founder Tiffany Justice and Southeastern Legal Foundation executive director Kim Hermann called on parents from more schools to join Moms for Liberty.

“The complaint filed against the Kettle Moraine School District is not a lawsuit; it’s an administrative complaint sent to the US Department of Education, which is currently under a federal court preliminary injunction,” Justice and Hermann said in an emailed statement condemning the Fair Wisconsin and GSAFE complaint. “The Title IX rewrite cannot be enforced in any school attended by a child of Moms for Liberty member. That injunction is in full force and effect now.”

The organizations that filed the complaint argued that it is a moral imperative to support and welcome those students protected by the new Title IX regulations.

“Creating a hostile environment for trans and nonbinary kids creates a hostile environment for every kid. Our children are watching, and when elected school board members weaponize the identity of some of our most vulnerable children, we must take action to stop them,” Abigail Swetz, the executive director of Fair Wisconsin, said in the groups’ press release. “We must show the children of Wisconsin – our trans and nonbinary kids and all of their peers – that we are ready to protect their rights and ensure their safety.”