Justice Department sues Minnesota over rules for girls sports

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(The Center Square) – The U.S. Justice Department's Civil Rights Division filed a lawsuit Monday against Minnesota, alleging the state's sports policies violate federal civil rights laws that protect against sex-based discrimination.

Title IX, the landmark federal law enacted in 1972, prohibits sex-based discrimination in education programs and activities that receive federal funding.

The Justice Department's lawsuit marks a new legal fight in the ongoing national debate over transgender student participation in school sports, challenging Minnesota’s policies as a violation of federal protections against sex-based discrimination.

The lawsuit contends that the Minnesota Department of Education and the Minnesota State High School League have engaged in sex-based discrimination by requiring girls to compete against boys in sports designated for girls.

"The Trump Administration does not tolerate flawed state policies that ignore biological reality and unfairly undermine girls on the playing field," Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement.

The lawsuit asks a judge to rule that Minnesota's policies regarding student athletes are illegal and to declare that the state has violated Title IX. The DOJ said Minnesota gets $3 billion in yearly federal funding.

Federal prosecutors argue that the state's policies "eviscerate equal athletic opportunities for girls."

"They also require girls to share intimate spaces – such as locker rooms – with boys. Allowing boys to invade sensitive female-only spaces endangers girls' privacy, dignity, and safety – causing a hostile educational environment that denies girls educational opportunities," attorneys for the Civil Rights Division wrote in the complaint against the state.

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said his office will stand up for transgender students.

"In April of last year, I sued the Trump administration to stop them from targeting trans kids who just want to play on their school team," he said in a statement to The Center Square. "This new suit is just a sad attempt to get attention over something that's already been in litigation for months."