Virginia’s Joint Commission on Administrative Rules voted 5-4 along party lines Monday, with the Democrat majority objecting to Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s proposed K-12 transgender policy.
During Monday’s hearing the ACLU and Equality Virginia gave long presentations arguing against Younkin’s model policy. It would require students to use school bathrooms that match their birth sex, require parental approval of changes to a student’s name or pronouns used at school and have participation in school athletics to be based on a student’s birth sex.
While given less time to speak during the public comment period, many parents took the opportunity to voice their support of Younkin’s policy.
“First of all, it's simply not true that a biological male can become a female in any sense of the word, ” VA resident Jeff Mitchell told the committee.
“Gender ideology is being pushed onto students by schools and counselors. It's being used as a wedge between parents and their children,” Dr. Todd Gathje of the Family Foundation of Virginia said.
Lending his support for Younkin's proposed school transgender policy, Gathje warned of lawmakers working against parental rights.
"This is evidenced by legislation here in Virginia that prohibits parents from accessing licensed counselors to help their children deal with gender confusion. School policies have allowed teachers and administrators to promote gender ideology and purposefully hiding information from parents."
“Parents — not government employees — are a child’s first, best and most loving guide,” said Will Estrada of Loudoun County.
“Common sense must prevail,” parent Mike Norin told the commission in voicing his support for the policy.
“Parents must be involved in their education, not the ACLU recommendations, nor school administrators, teachers or aides. But we are thankful for the teachers and the aides. But their role is just to teach,” Norin added.
Some highlights from Monday’s hearing can be seen in the video above.
Legally, the panel’s vote objecting to the policies is considered to be more of a recommendation, it does not have the power to stop the transgender policies from going into effect.
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Ohio's General Assembly voted down a bill that would have prevented transgender women from competing against biological women. https://t.co/Rg3krRNUDE
— MRCTV (@mrctv) December 20, 2022