by Reagan Reese
An Idaho school board canceled any further action on a proposed policy that would allow the use of bathrooms and locker rooms on the basis of gender identity rather than biological sex, following community uproar.
Caldwell School Board put its gender identity policy on hold on Monday after community backlash caused a previous meeting to abruptly end. The pause comes as Idaho’s Senate Education Committee introduced legislation that would require Idaho students to use bathrooms and locker rooms on the basis of biological sex, according to KTVB 7.
“The gender you’ve been assigned at birth, that’s the bathroom that you’re going to use, that’s the locker room that you’re going to use,” Republican state Rep. Brent Crane said at the Monday board meeting, according to KTVB 7.
In January, the school board proposed the policy which advises teachers to call students by their preferred pronouns. The school board shut down the meeting early after those protesting the policy failed to listen to the board’s warnings regarding conduct.
“It is always okay to have concerns, especially when regarding the safety of your child,” a Caldwell student said at the January meeting. “But, it is also unfair to ignore the concerns of others, including the children that policy that 3281 was written for.”
Republican state Sen. Chris Trakel spoke at the January meeting before the Caldwell Police escorted the school board out. The school board canceled a follow-up meeting to discuss the proposed policy in January over safety concerns, according to the Idaho Press.
“And like I told you before, you will face litigation,” Trakel told the board. “You called that a threat, I’m telling you that is what will happen. It’s already happened in several states and there have already been rulings on it.”
Trakel, Crane and the Caldwell School Board did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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Reagan Reese is a reporter at Daily Caller News Foundation.
Photo “Students” by RODNAE Productions.
