The antipathy between Florida and the White House shows no signs of letting up following the recent overhaul of Title IX from the Biden administration.
Last Friday, the Department of Education unveiled its new Title IX regulations which expanded the definition of sex-based discrimination to include "gender identity." Many states have issued laws preventing transgender students from using school bathrooms or participating in sports that align with their gender identity as opposed to their biological sex.
"Florida rejects Joe Biden's attempt to rewrite Title IX," said GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis to open his reaction to the new rules.
Posting on X, DeSantis said, "We will not comply and we will fight back. We are not going to let Joe Biden try to inject men into women's activities. We are not going to let [President] Joe Biden undermine the rights of parents and we are not going to let Joe Biden abuse his constitutional authority to try to impose these policies on us here in Florida."
While the new rules avoid specifically addressing the issue of athletics, the language is written as to offer blanket protection to provide equal access to an education, and to ensure schools do not treat transgender students differently.
Conservative lawmakers in the Sunshine State see the language as a sleight of hand designed to "gaslight the country into believing that biological sex no longer has any meaning."
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody echoed the governor's sentiments, saying, "Biden's new Title IX rules shred protections for women — that so many fought for over decades."
"The idea that young girls can now legally be forced to undress in the same room with males in what is supposed to be a safe space like a locker room, that a young woman could be randomly assigned a roommate that is a biological male with little-to-no-say over the matter, or that biological men would be eligible for women's scholarships is ludicrous. We absolutely plan to challenge this betrayal of women in court," Moody continued on X.
James Morley III ✉
James Morley III is a writer with more than two decades of experience in entertainment, travel, technology, and science and nature.
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