Four Things You Should Know about Student Rights and Day of Silence

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — On behalf of six military families with students enrolled in Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) schools, the American Civil Liberties Union today filed a motion for preliminary injunction seeking to declare DoDEA’s enforcement of executive orders resulting in classroom censorship unconstitutional. DoDEA, whose students lead the United States in math and reading proficiency scores, operates 161 schools across 11 countries, seven states, Guam, and Puerto Rico. The demand for an injunction was filed on behalf of 12 students and their families, ranging from pre-K to 11th grade, who attend DoDEA schools as children of active duty servicemembers stationed in Virginia, Kentucky, Italy, and Japan. Since January, the plaintiffs’ schools have removed books, altered curricula, and canceled events that the current administration has accused of promoting “gender ideology” or “divisive equity ideology.” Censored items include materials about slavery, Native American history, women’s history, LGBTQ identities and history, and preventing sexual harassment and abuse, as well as portions of the Advanced Placement (AP) Psychology curriculum. “We make sacrifices as a military family so that my husband can defend the Constitution and the rights and freedoms of all Americans,” said Jessica Henninger, a plaintiff on behalf of her children in DoDEA schools. “If our own rights and the rights of our children are at risk, we have a responsibility to speak out. Despite the anxiety and uncertainty among DoDEA parents and students right now, we know that our children have a right to an education free from censorship, and we won't stand by silently and watch that right be taken away.” The new motion includes a list of 233 books alleged to have been quarantined or removed from shelves, including: “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee; “#MeToo: Women Speak Out Against Sexual Assault,” edited by the New York Times; “Looking for Alaska” by John Green; “Can't Stop Won't Stop: A Hip-Hop History” by Jeff Chang; “Generation Brave: The Gen Z Kids Who Are Changing the World” by Kate Alexander; and “Julián is a Mermaid” by Jessica Love. It includes further titles by acclaimed authors including Margaret Atwood, Toni Morrison, Kurt Vonnegut, and Ta-Nehisi Coates. The vast majority of titles appear to be by or about women, people of color, or LGBTQ people. “These are American students in American schools, and they have the same First Amendment rights as their peers,” said Emerson Sykes, senior staff attorney with the ACLU’s Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project. “Families in DoDEA schools have the right to access books about race and gender and the right to learn about the vibrantly diverse world around them. We owe it to these students to help them learn and grow, not stifle their age-appropriate exposure to ideas this administration happens to deem politically incorrect.” One DoDEA school canceled events honoring Juneteenth and Holocaust Remembrance Day, and another removed posters featuring Malala Yousafzai and Frida Kahlo. Families allege in the filings that their requests for information from DoDEA about what information has been removed or why have gone unanswered. “Classroom censorship has impacted our clients’ ability to prepare for AP exams, to learn about their neighbors and peers, and to see themselves in their curriculum,” said Corey Shapiro, legal director for the ACLU of Kentucky. “And in DoDEA schools, which are some of the most diverse and high performing schools in the nation, the impact is magnified. This kind of political meddling is antithetical to the First Amendment.” “The Trump administration cannot violate the First Amendment by removing books and curricula it doesn’t like,” said Matt Callahan, senior supervising attorney at the ACLU of Virginia. “Students have a right to see themselves reflected in their libraries and classrooms, and they also have a right to learn from the perspectives of people who aren’t like them. That’s no less true for military families than for anyone else.” The ACLU, the ACLU of Kentucky, and the ACLU of Virginia filed suit last month, arguing that DoDEA enforcement of three executive orders signed by President Donald Trump in January 2025 led to widespread violations of students’ First Amendment rights. The suit, and the motion for preliminary injunction, were filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. The motion can be viewed online here.

WASHINGTON - A civilian employee of the Illinois National Guard has filed a class action complaint to the Army National Guard Bureau Equal Opportunity Office (NGB-EO) challenging a Trump administration policy prohibiting transgender federal employees from using restrooms and other accommodations aligned with their gender. LeAnne Withrow of Springfield, Illinois, is a lead military and family readiness specialist and civilian employee for the Illinois National Guard. Previously, she served as a staff sergeant for the National Guard and is the recipient of multiple commendations and awards, including the Illinois National Guard Abraham Lincoln Medal of Freedom. Following a January 20 executive order signed by President Trump, officials with the Office of Personnel Management, the Department of Defense, and the federal National Guard Bureau issued notices to all employees requiring use of designated restrooms strictly based upon their sex assigned at birth. Soon after, Withrow was instructed by supervisors within her chain of command that she may not use restrooms and other facilities designated for women. That order violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits sex discrimination in employment. In a 2020 ruling, the Supreme Court of the United States held 6-3 that Title VII prohibits discrimination against transgender workers on the basis of their sex. Today’s class action filing challenges the executive order and ensuing implementation actions with violating Title VII as well as the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and the federal Administrative Procedures Act. The complaint was filed on behalf of Ms. Withrow by the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of DC, the Roger Baldwin Foundation of the ACLU, and Democracy Forward. “Since coming out nearly a decade ago, the fact that I’m transgender has had no negative impact on my abilities as a worker and has caused no disruption or disturbance among my colleagues or supervisors,” said LeAnne Withrow, a civilian federal employee for the Illinois National Guard. “This policy would put a needless barrier between my work on behalf of military families, forcing me to choose between my service to this country and my own dignity. I love my work and want nothing to come between me and the people I serve. I’m hopeful the courts will see through this blatant effort to push people like me out of the federal workforce.” “Let’s be clear–if you cannot use the bathroom at work, you cannot go to work,” said Shana Knizhnik, Senior Staff Attorney for the ACLU’s LGBTQ & HIV Project. “Transgender federal workers across the federal government are facing an intentional effort to drive them out of the workforce and out of public life by an administration with no shortage of hostility towards them and their identities. We look forward to making this case to the agency and will do everything we can to ensure all federal workers are treated equally and fairly regardless of who they love or who they are.” “This case is about people. Targeting transgender people is both unlawful and a dangerous example by our federal government. Democracy Forward is honored to work with LeAnne and our partners in this case to defend transgender people from hateful and harmful bigotry,” said Democracy Forward Legal Director Audrey Wiggins. “This policy is part of a national campaign to push transgender people out of public life,” said Michael Perloff, Senior Staff Attorney at the ACLU-D.C. “It’s discrimination pure and simple and it has no place in our law or our society.” “Illinois has rejected the senseless, reckless discrimination against transgender people that is the hallmark of the Trump Administration,” said Michelle Garcia, Deputy Legal Director at the ACLU of Illinois. “As a proud, vital member of the Illinois National Guard, who has served our state and this country honorably and proudly, neither LeAnne nor any other federal employee should be forced to use a restroom that is inconsistent with their gender identity.” Today’s complaint filed to the National Guard Bureau Equal Opportunity Office can be found here.

BOSTON – The American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Massachusetts, and Covington & Burling LLC filed motions for class certification and preliminary classwide relief today in their lawsuit challenging the State Department’s refusal to issue passports with accurate sex designations for trans, intersex, and nonbinary American citizens. The new filing follows a federal court ruling finding that an executive order by President Trump and the passport policy implementing that order are likely unconstitutional and unlawful. The court’s preliminary injunction requires the State Department to issue updated passports to six transgender and nonbinary people who are named plaintiffs in the lawsuit. The new filings ask the court to certify a class of people adversely affected by the State Department policy and to extend this relief nationwide to the entire class so that other transgender, intersex, and nonbinary people can receive accurate passports. “The court’s finding that this policy is likely unconstitutional and unlawful holds just as true for our class members as it does for our plaintiffs, and we are asking the court to expand its preliminary injunction to protect the rights of all transgender, intersex, and nonbinary people,” said Li Nowlin-Sohl, Senior Staff Attorney at the ACLU LGBTQ & HIV Project. “By forcing people to carry documents that directly contradict their identities, the Trump administration is attacking the very foundations of the right to privacy and the freedom to be ourselves,” said Jessie Rossman, Legal Director at ACLU of Massachusetts. “It is important that every person has the ability to live and travel safely, and we will continue to fight to rescind this unlawful policy to make sure that this relief extends to everyone.” On his first day in office in January 2025, Trump signed an executive order attempting to mandate discrimination against transgender people across the federal government and government programs. This included a directive to the Departments of State and Homeland Security “to require that government-issued identification documents, including passports, visas, and Global Entry cards” reflect their sex “at conception.” Under the ensuing passport policy, the State Department began refusing to issue new, renewed, or changed passports with a sex designation other than what the State Department believed to be their sex assigned at birth regardless of the sex designation applied for. Over 214,000 public comments in opposition to the State Department’s new policy were collected by the ACLU and Advocates for Transgender Equality. In February 2025, the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Massachusetts, and Covington and Burling LLP filed the Orr v. Trump class action complaint on behalf of seven people who have not been able to obtain passports that match who they are because of the State Department’s new passport policy or who are likely to be impacted by the new policy upon their next renewal. The complaint was filed in the federal District Court for the District of Massachusetts. An amended complaint was filed on April 25, adding five named plaintiffs seeking to represent the class along with the seven plaintiffs named in the original complaint.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, as leaders in the U.S. House and Senate are set to reintroduce the Equality Act — historic federal legislation that would ensure comprehensive nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQ+ people everywhere — a coalition of civil rights organizations urgently calls for the legislation’s swift passage. The bill’s reintroduction comes amidst a dangerous rise in anti-LGBTQ+ legislative and executive actions, including the erosion of nondiscrimination protections and weaponization of federal authorities against marginalized communities. The coalition includes: Advocates for Transgender Equality, ACLU, Equality Federation, Family Equality, GLAD, GLSEN, the Human Rights Campaign, NBJC, National Center for Lesbian Rights, National LGBTQ Task Force Action Fund, National Women’s Law Center and PFLAG. The groups issued the following statement: “Every LGBTQ+ person deserves the freedom to be themselves and to thrive. That’s why we’re calling on Congress/federal lawmakers to ensure equality for everyone, no matter who we love or our gender identity. Anti-equality politicians have worked to crater the health, education, housing, financial, workplace safety and public accommodations laws that protect all of us. These harmful efforts have meant that in 2025, LGBTQ+ people can be denied a loan, an apartment, or access to public facilities simply because of who they are. And now, the Trump-Vance administration has weaponized the Executive Branch against every marginalized community, taking aim at all of our civil rights and freedoms. “These attacks challenge the bedrock laws protecting our universal freedoms, but they cannot strip us of our collective power. Our communities, our states and our nation are stronger because each of us across race, place and gender brings our history, our culture, our experience and our know-how to make us strong. That is why passing the Equality Act is so necessary in this moment. The bill is more than a lifeline for those in danger of losing necessary protections; it ensures all people in this country—Black, white or brown, Native or newcomer, queer or straight, transgender or not—can live freely without constant fear of discrimination or retaliation. The Equality Act is a declaration that the United States continues to fight for freedom for all. “Across areas of life, this bill would safeguard people from discrimination and ensure we all have the chance to chase our American Dream. Congress should pass the Equality Act and send a message to the country that we all deserve to live authentically and have the opportunity to thrive.” The nonpartisan Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) found that national support for the Equality Act topped 75 percent, including a majority of Republicans and Independents. The Equality Act has also garnered support from businesses and over 650 organizations, including civil rights, education, health care, and faith-based groups. The Equality Act was reintroduced today by Congressman Mark Takano and Senators Jeff Merkley, Tammy Baldwin and Cory Booker. The Equality Act: Consistent and Explicit Protections for LGBTQ+ People The sharp rise in anti-LGBTQ+ measures has led to a dizzying patchwork of fragmented and discriminatory laws, creating hostile environments and inconsistent protections for LGBTQ+ people. With nearly two-thirds of LGBTQ+ people reporting facing discrimination in their daily lives, the Equality Act would establish consistent federal non-discrimination protections in critical areas such as housing, credit, education, public spaces and services, federally funded programs, and jury service. This legislation is essential to ensure universal safeguards against discrimination. Without federal protections, LGBTQ+ individuals across the United States face significant vulnerabilities, such as eviction, denial of services, unfair surcharges, or refusal of healthcare and loans, simply due to their identity. The Equality Act seeks to address these inequities by providing consistent anti-discrimination protections nationwide. It ensures that LGBTQ+ individuals can live without fear of harassment or discrimination, while also expanding essential protections for women, people of color, and individuals of all faiths. The Equality Act also extends crucial protections from discrimination based on sex, race, and religion. The Equality Act also extends protections to millions on the basis of sex — who aren’t covered by some existing federal anti-discrimination laws — to ensure they don’t have to live in fear of harassment or discrimination. In addition, it modernizes public accommodations law to provide increased protections from discrimination on the basis of race and religion. It would ensure that women cannot be charged more than men by a dry cleaner for cleaning a shirt, or that those who breastfeed are not harassed or excluded from public spaces, or that women aren’t turned away from a pharmacy refusing to fill a birth control prescription. It would ensure that taxis and car-sharing services cannot refuse service to Black people, and that stores can’t refuse entrance to people of color. It would ensure that an accountant agency cannot refuse to work for someone because they disagree with their religion. Anti-LGBTQ+ Attacks Have Continued to Escalate, Underscoring the Need for the Equality Act Since inauguration, the Trump Administration has signed a raft of anti-LGBTQ+ executive actions aimed at restricting the rights and freedoms of LGBTQ+ people. These actions include efforts to: Restrict access to health care for transgender people of all ages Restrict transgender youth from participating in sports Censor classrooms and punish inclusive and welcoming schools for their support of LGBTQ+ youth Rollback nondiscrimination protections in health care settings and others Restrict access to accurate federal identity documents for transgender and nonbinary people, and more These anti-LGBTQ+ executive actions build on a yearslong campaign by state legislatures and anti-equality governors to weaken protections for LGBTQ+ people and assail equality nationwide. Transgender, non-binary, and gender non-conforming youth in particular have been directly impacted by anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, losing access to life-saving medical care, comprehensive and inclusive education, and activities, spaces, and facilities. Gender affirming care bans (26 states) — nearly 40 percent of all transgender youth age 13-17 are living in states where they can no longer access life-saving, best practices medical care. In more than a dozen states, restrictions on care have implications for adults as well, especially through bans on public funds going to provide this best practice healthcare and restrictions on which medical professionals are authorized to prescribe such care. More than 30 states introduced gender affirming care bans during the 2023 legislative session, meaning that at its height, half of all transgender youth in the U.S. were at risk of losing access to gender-affirming care. Anti-Transgender sports bans (26 states) — prohibit trans youth from participating in sports alongside their friends. These bills affect large swaths of trans youth as young as middle school (with some states even extending restrictions down to kindergarten). Bathroom bans (18 states) and 12 states with laws that restrict trans youth from using facilities in school consistent with their gender identity and 4 states with laws restricting trans people from using public bathrooms. In recent months, the scope of state legislative attacks has continued to widen. Last month, Iowa became the first state to remove existing statewide nondiscrimination protections from a community when Governor Kim Reynolds signed the law eliminating “gender identity” as a protected class in the Iowa Civil Rights Act. In addition, numerous states, including Idaho, North Dakota, and Michigan, have seen anti-equality politicians put forward resolutions calling for the United States Supreme Court to overturn their marriage equality ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges. The time to act is now. The reintroduction of the Equality Act marks a critical moment for our country to reaffirm its foundational promise: that freedom, dignity, and equal opportunity are guaranteed for all. Amid a wave of escalating attacks and system rollbacks, Congress has the chance–and the responsibility–to rise to this moment and deliver real, lasting protections for LGBTQ+ people and all who face discrimination.