Case Summary
In today’s America, freedom of speech is under assault. The Biden Administration’s efforts to make sweeping revisions to Title IX are part and parcel of that effort. Title IX is the 1972 statute, signed by President Richard Nixon, to protect students from sex discrimination in schools that receive federal funding. In 1972, there was no confusion that “sex” referred to the dichotomy between males and females.
Congress gave the Department of Education (DOEd) the ability to interpret Title IX through regulations. Yet now, Biden’s regulations—which were published on April 29, 2024, with an effective date of August 1, 2024—would dangerously broaden the scope of sex discrimination in schools, to include new mandates with respect to all gender identities and all sexual orientations. In addition to the myriad problems that this will cause in student athletics, school administration, and privacy generally, the Biden Administration’s efforts would also pose a grave threat to our First Amendment rights, compelling us to speak against our convictions, thus upending the foundation of free expression for every American.
The stakes are high in the legal battle of Moms for Liberty v. US Department of Education, as our clients Moms for Liberty and Young America’s Foundation, along with other plaintiffs, including the States of Kansas, Alaska, Utah, Wyoming, challenge DOEd’s final rule. The fight could reshape the future of free expression in our nation.
As the legal battle unfolds, Moms for Liberty v. US Department of Education emerges at a defining moment—a test of our commitment to the ideals upon which this nation was founded. Thankfully, Biden’s new regulations aren’t effective yet—not till August 1, 2024. But with MSLF’s legal challenge to the regulations, we hope to stop them before they can be put into effect.
Case Background
Moms for Liberty, a national organization dedicated to advocating parental rights and resisting ideological indoctrination in schools, stands shoulder-to-shoulder with Young America’s Foundation, a student organization dedicated to traditional values, and a champion of unfettered discourse. Together, they represent a coalition of students, educators, parents, and other individuals who staunchly oppose compelled speech, and instead want to uphold the constitutional freedom to express their convictions.
For our clients this is not merely a legal battle; It’s a generational fight against a massive effort to reshape education in the country. Their members—parents, students, and advocates alike—refuse to be silenced or coerced into submission. They stand firm in their belief that the government has no right to dictate what they can and cannot say, particularly on matters as fundamental as biological sex.
The Issue
Far from merely “interpreting” Title IX, DOEd’s new Title IX regulations instead radically redefine “sex discrimination” to encompass all gender identity and sexual orientation discrimination, effectively forcing speakers to use “preferred pronouns,” including neo-pronouns like the singular “they/them,” “ze/zir” and others that you’ve never even heard of. They also define as sex-based harassment many forms of speech that are simply fact: like saying that boys may not become girls. But under Biden’s regulations, people would be required to use preferred pronouns and acknowledge numerous gender identities that conflict with biology, or face disciplinary action or discrimination charges if they do not comply. Even when the DOEd was rolling out their published regulations, they acknowledged that “misgendering” will constitute harassment in many cases.
The First Amendment is clear: the government cannot establish speech and belief codes that force students and teachers to buy into offensive ideas. Every American has the right to their own beliefs about what is true and what is false.
Yet, this is precisely what DOEd’s new rule seeks to do. By planning to implement these Title IX regulations, DOEd threatens students and faculty at schools nationwide with discipline if they use sex-based pronouns to refer to individuals as male or female, regardless of the individual’s desire to be referred to using pronouns associated with a different gender identity. This expansive definition of “sex-based harassment” means that merely using biologically accurate pronouns, or expressing disagreement with these ideology, could be deemed harassment, and must be punished by schools under these new regulations.
Moreover, the broadening of Title IX’s scope would suppress the vast majority of voices who use regular, ordinary pronouns, and it would stifle open discourse, leading to censorship and even legal repercussions for those expressing mainstream viewpoints, either grounded in religious or moral convictions, or just plain principled objection. In essence, the Biden Administration’s changes to Title IX would coerce individuals to conform to specific beliefs, no matter how burdensome that would be.
Mountain States’ involvement in this case is rooted in its longstanding commitment to defending free speech rights. Our lawsuit seeks injunctive and declaratory relief, so as to invalidate the new Title IX regulations even before they would go into effect in August 2024.
Join the Fight
Since 1977, MSLF has fought to protect private property rights, individual liberties, and economic freedom. MSLF is a nonprofit public interest legal foundation. We represent clients pro bono and receive no government funding. Make your 100% tax deductible contribution today and join the fight.
What’s at Stake
For our clients and all Americans, it is the preservation of the First Amendment—the bedrock upon which our democracy stands. The new Title IX regulations would threaten all Americans’ fundamental right to express themselves without fear of retaliation or censorship, and the right to refrain from carrying the government’s message when they disagree.
It is no easy task to sue the federal government, especially when the other side will scream allegations of bigotry and intolerance. Nevertheless, the plaintiffs in Moms for Liberty v. US Department of Education have the courage to bring this fight, and we intend to prevail. In doing so, they will secure not only their own rights but also the rights of every American to speak the truth.
