The Brief
A federal judge ruled Florida’s restrictions on transgender teachers’ pronouns violate civil-rights law.
The case is on hold while a Georgia appeal on similar issues is pending.
The outcome could shape workplace protections for transgender employees across the Southeast.
ORLANDO, Fla. - A federal judge in Florida has ruled that the state’s law requiring teachers to use pronouns that match a student’s sex at birth amounts to discrimination, conflicting with federal protections against employment discrimination based on sex.
Law championed by Gov. DeSantis
What we know
A federal judge has ruled that Florida’s 2023 law restricting pronouns transgender teachers can use in classrooms violates federal civil-rights law. U.S. District Judge Mark Walker sided with two teachers — Katie Wood of Hillsborough County and a Lee County teacher identified as Jane Doe — finding that the law discriminates under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits workplace discrimination on the basis of sex.
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Walker wrote that the law forces transgender teachers to abandon their preferred pronouns and titles under threat of discipline, suspension, or even termination, effectively changing the terms and conditions of their employment.
What we don't know
While Walker declared the law discriminatory, he stopped short of issuing an injunction or awarding damages. The future of the case now depends on how the full 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rules in a separate Georgia case, Lange v. Houston County, which could determine whether transgender employees are protected under Title VII in similar circumstances.
The backstory
The Florida law is one of several measures championed by Gov. Ron DeSantis and Republican lawmakers targeting issues of gender identity and transgender rights.
These include restrictions on gender-affirming care for minors. Walker had previously issued a preliminary injunction protecting Wood under First Amendment grounds, but that order was overturned by a divided appeals court panel in July, which said teachers speaking in classrooms are acting as government employees, not private citizens.
Big picture view
The case reflects the ongoing national legal and political battle over transgender rights in schools and workplaces. If the appeals court sides against the teachers, it could embolden Florida and other states to continue enforcing pronoun restrictions. A ruling in their favor, however, could solidify federal protections for transgender workers under Title VII.
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The Source
This story was written based on information shared by the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida and reporting by the News Service of Florida.
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