Dear John,

The Biden administration has FINALLY finalized a new Title IX rule, effectively replacing Betsy DeVos’ harmful, protection-stripping rule that has been in place for almost four years! This new rule is set to have a significant impact on the broader landscape of gender equity in education.

Title IX’s promise, when it was enacted 52 years ago, was to broadly guarantee all students' equal educational opportunities free from sex discrimination. But in the years since its passage, opponents have stopped at nothing to weaken these crucial civil rights protections—refusing to uphold and enforce critical protections against sexual harassment and discrimination against LGBTQI+ students, particularly transgender, nonbinary, and intersex students. The Biden administration’s Title IX rule restores much of the promise of Title IX by helping to ensure that student survivors of sex-based harassment, pregnant and parenting students, and LGBTQI+ students (especially transgender, nonbinary, and intersex students) can attend school free from discrimination, harassment, and violence.

However, as we celebrate this as great news, we must continue to advocate for the last piece of the Title IX rule, which has been further delayed: explicit clarifications protecting the rights of transgender, nonbinary, and intersex student athletes.

With or without a regulation, transgender, nonbinary, and intersex students are protected by Title IX. But students deserve and need a rule that clearly sets out those protections, especially given that half of states have passed laws banning trans students from participating in sports—and these bans are still spreading. Just last week, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics banned transgender women from playing on women’s sports teams. Join us in thanking the Biden administration for moving forward by finalizing a Title IX rule but telling them the work is not done—the Biden administration must release a Title IX rule that explicitly protects all students’ equal access to athletics.

Together, we can work towards a future where every student feels safe, empowered, and valued in school. Your advocacy makes a difference.

In solidarity,

Shiwali Patel
she/her/hers
Director of Justice for Students Survivors & Senior Counsel
National Women's Law Center