LGBTQ+ rights advocates are bracing for what Donald Trump’s return to the White House could mean for transgender students in K-12 schools under a Department of Education that is likely to target them.
Advocacy groups say that while President-elect Donald Trump’s plan to eliminate the Department of Education is far-fetched, there’s plenty he could do to obstruct how the department’s Office for Civil Rights investigates complaints of discrimination and harassment from transgender students as soon as he enters office.
Anti-trans attacks were a key part of Republican messaging in the 2024 election, stirring fears that the transgender community will be under fire as the party takes control of Washington. But they’re not just looking at the campaign rhetoric as an indicator of how Trump’s Department of Education will treat transgender students: They’re also looking at the last time he was president.