California is looking to defy President Donald Trump’s executive order banning transgender individuals from women’s sports.
The California Interscholastic Federation said that it operates in compliance with state law. According to the state’s education code, students are allowed to participate in school programs that correspond with their gender identity.
The San Francisco Chronicle reports that CIF will “continue to follow state law even with an executive order that directly opposes the California education code.” The matter will likely be addressed in court.
Rob Bonta, the state’s attorney general, has urged the state not to comply with Trump’s orders pertaining to transgenderism. Addressing Trump’s order ending federal funding for transgender surgeries on minors, Bonta said, “California supports the rights of transgender youth to live their lives as their authentic selves.”
“We will not let the President turn back the clock or deter us from upholding California values. I understand that the President’s executive order on gender-affirming care has created some confusion,” he stated. “Let me be clear: California law has not changed, and hospitals and clinics have a legal obligation to provide equal access to healthcare services.”
Bonta has also declared that California schools will “continue to create a welcoming environment for all students, including transgender and gender nonconforming students.”
“Discrimination has no place in the classroom. The President’s executive order attempts to erode the sanctity of schools as a place where children learn and grow,” he said, discussing Trump’s order against the indoctrination of students through anti-American ideas. “Let me be clear: School curriculum and instructional materials are a state and local decision. The federal government does not have authority to dictate what is taught in California.”
