Betsy DeVos Says Schools Can Discriminate Against LGBTQ Students

The latest Trump-era blow against the LGBTQ community came in the form of a statement from Education Secretary Betsy DeVos. Devos has stated that it is OK for publicly-funded schools to discriminate against LGBTQ students and that their funding would not be at risk.

According to LGBTQ Nation, during a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing, DeVos told Rep. Katherine Clark, a Democrat from Massachusetts, that giving states flexibility and the concept of “school choice” are more important than LGBTQ protections. During the exchange, Clark asked DeVos what she would do about Lighthouse Cristian Academy, a private school in Indiana that refuses students who embrace an “alternate gender identity” or have a “homosexual lifestyle.” Clark asked what would happen if the school sought federal funding with such discriminatory practices in place. DeVos deflected the question, stating that “school choice” in general was her focus and not that specific case.

“Is there a line for you on state flexibility?” Clark asked during their exchange, according to  LGBTQ Nation. “You are the backstop for students and their right to access a quality education.Would you say, in this case, we are going to overrule and you cannot discriminate, whether it be on sexual orientation, race, special needs, in our voucher program? Will that be a guarantee from you for our students?”

“For states that have programs that allow parents to make choices, they set up the rules around that,” DeVos said in response, implying that students really wouldn’t have any protections in place if the school decided to discriminate.

In the end, DeVos just implied that parents should pull children out of schools where discrimination takes place and find somewhere else for them, rather than force the school to stop with discriminatory practices.

“We believe parents are the best-equipped to make choices for their children’s schooling and education decisions,” DeVos said. “And too many children today are trapped in schools that don’t work for them.”

This is the last in a series of disappointing blows against the queer community by the new political administration. LGBTQ groups can take action to try and bring political change at the state and school level in order to deflect the “state choice” rulings.