Federal court: Olentangy schools can punish students for bullying over pronouns
A panel of federal circuit court judges Monday said Olentangy Local Schools can enforce policies against bullying of transgender students by prohibiting students from intentionally misgendering others.
The judges on the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals based in Cincinnati, said Monday in a 2-1 decision that the district did not compel speech in a way that violates students' First Amendment rights, upholding a previous decision from a U.S. district court judge. Last year, the U.S. district court denied a preliminary injunction request filed by Parents Defending Education, which would have required the Olentangy Local School District to immediately change its harassment policies for students, The Dispatch previously reported.
The policies in question prohibit students from intentionally misgendering transgender students — such as failing to address them by their preferred pronouns — including on personal devices, The Dispatch previously reported. The policies also prevent students from engaging in discriminatory harassment or bullying based on race, national origin, sex, disability, religion or ancestry. Olentangy Local School District is the fourth largest in the state, with over 23,000 students.
On Monday, in the majority opinion, Circuit Judge Jane Stranch wrote that "without the ability to enforce such anti-harassment policies, the District would be unable to protect students" from abuse and harassment.
"The district is entitled to recognize that speech about specific students’ identities is particularly harmful and likely to disrupt the educational experience, and to regulate that speech accordingly," Stranch wrote.
In a statement provided to The Dispatch, the district said it was pleased the court "affirmed the constitutionality of our policies, and we remain committed to creating a safe and inclusive environment for all of our students."
"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," the district statement read.
Circuit Judge Alice Batchelder wrote the dissent against the majority, arguing that Parents Defending Education would likely succeed on merits of its arguments and that the First Amendment prevents the district "from compelling students to use speech that conveys a message with which they disagree, namely that biology does not determine gender."
The initial suit was filed last May by Parents Defending Education, a Virginia-based conservative nonprofit group that describes itself as "a national grassroots organization." It opposes what it calls "ideologically driven curriculum with a concerning and often divisive emphasis on students’ group identities: race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation and gender."
In the case against Olentangy Schools, Parents Defending Education said on behalf of parents that the policies violate students' rights under the First and 14th amendments, The Dispatch previously reported. The group claims the policies require students to affirm the idea that gender is fluid, contrary to their deeply held religious beliefs. In its legal filing, the group also said the policies are too broad because they apply to students’ conduct on their devices while they are not at school.
Nicole Neily, president of Parents Defending Education, said in a statement that while the organization was disappointed in the decision, "this is not the end of the road" and that Parents Defending Organization will seek "further review of this decision."
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Olentangy Schools can enforce preferred pronoun policy