Equality California Urges Senators to Question DeVos on Anti-LGBT Ties

Washington, D.C. - January 16, 2017 - Ahead of Tuesday's confirmation hearing of Betsy DeVos, nominee for U.S. Secretary of Education, Equality California requested that U.S. senators carefully examine her views on challenges facing LGBT students, including bullying, access to school bathrooms, other facilities and programs for transgender students, and the application of Title IX to sexual assault in K-12 schools and on college campuses.

"Equality California believes that all students should be able to attend school in a safe learning environment free from discrimination, harassment and a lack of acceptance," said Rick Zbur, executive director of Equality California. "Bullied LGBT students, particularly those who do not conform to traditional gender norms, are at high risk. They fall behind in school, drop out, and attempt suicide at far higher rates than their non-LGBT peers."

In a letter sent to members of the U.S. Senate, Equality California requested senators to probe and obtain from DeVos responses to the following questions:

Does she support the practice of conversion therapy? Entities affiliated with the DeVos family have been significant contributors to organizations and candidates that have been hostile to LGBT equality and social justice and that have advocated for the harmful practice, banned for children in California and elsewhere.
Was she involved in the decisions to become involved with and does she support the significant levels of financial contributions her family's foundation gives to the virulently anti-LGBT Family Research Council?
Does she support full legal equality for LGBT people, including the federal Equality Act?
Does she intend to follow existing Department of Education practice on protections for LGBT students?
Does she believe that transgender students should be allowed to use bathrooms and participate in school programs and activities consistent with their gender identity? Title IX protects all students, including transgender and gender-nonconforming students, from sex discrimination. Although schools are legally required to treat students consistent with their gender identity and to allow them to fully participate in school activities and access facilities, in practice, transgender students are often barred from using restrooms that conform with their gender identity.
Does she believe the Department of Education should engage on so-called "bathroom bills" to ensure that students can use facilities and participate in programs consistent with their gender identity?
Does she believe that Title IX has been correctly interpreted to protect people against sexual assault, regardless of gender, sexual orientation and gender identity? Does she think that college students have the right to sue their schools for failure to protect them against sexual violence (Clery Act)?
Is she familiar with the work of the White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault, and does she agree with its range of recommendations to combat sexual assault on K-12 and college campuses?
Does she intend to promote already available resources and tools designed to keep students safe to college presidents and administrators, as well as campus and community law enforcement?

Existing policies and executive orders help ensure that vulnerable LGBT students, particularly those who are gender non-conforming, have safe learning environments, free from bullying, harassment and sexual assault. Equality California has also petitioned senators to probe the views of various other cabinet nominees of the incoming Trump administration on issues of concern to the LGBT community.

Equality California is the nation's largest statewide lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization dedicated to creating a fair and just society. Our mission is to achieve and maintain full and lasting equality, acceptance and social justice for all people in our diverse LGBT communities, inside and outside of California. Our mission includes advancing the health and well-being of LGBT Californians through direct healthcare service advocacy and education. Through electoral, advocacy, education and mobilization programs, we strive to create a broad and diverse alliance of LGBT people, educators, government officials, communities of color and faith, labor, business, and social justice communities to achieve our goals. www.eqca.org