It’s sad that just treating all children with respect has become a political issue
By Editorial Board,
THE CASE began on the first day of class in a political philosophy course at a public university in Ohio, when a professor mistakenly used the incorrect honorific. He called a transgender woman “sir,” and when the student requested he refer to her with female pronouns and honorifics, an impasse developed. The professor said his religious beliefs prevented him from communicating messages about gender identity that he believes are false. He was disciplined by the university for not complying with the school’s nondiscrimination policy, and a lawsuit ensued.
At issue in the case of Shawnee State University professor Nicholas Meriwether is the question of whose rights take priority when a transgender student’s demands for respect and recognition conflict with a teacher’s personal views or religious beliefs. It’s a question that is being asked with increasing frequency as the number of transgender students grows and the use of pronouns has become a new battleground in the culture wars.
Loudoun County was the site of the most recent controversy. The Northern Virginia school system suspended an elementary school teacher who said he wouldn’t use transgender students’ pronouns. “I’m a teacher, but I serve God first. And I will not affirm that a biological boy can be a girl and vice versa because it is against my religion,” physical education teacher Tanner Cross declared at a school board meeting in May. Mr. Cross’s comments came during his testimony, as a private citizen, against a proposed school policy that would require teachers to call transgender students by the pronouns and names they use. As a judge ruled last week in ordering the school system to reinstate Mr. Cross, his constitutional rights to free speech were violated. School officials were wrong to punish Mr. Cross for expressing his opinion on a matter they had put up for public comment.
What happens to Mr. Cross if the school board adopts — as we think it should — the policy and he refuses to comply is another matter. Schools are legally obligated to provide an equitable, safe and inclusive learning environment for all students, and the proposal simply aligns Loudoun County policy with the Code of Virginia and the Virginia Department of Education’s guidelines for the treatment of transgender students.
When these issues have arisen, some schools have tried to reach an accommodation. In Mr. Meriwether’s case, for example, the university suggested he stop using masculine and feminine titles and gendered pronouns. But he responded that was not possible and that he would refer to the student in question by her last name only. He continued, though, to address the other students as “Ms.” and “Mr.,” prompting an official reprimand from the school. His suit was initially dismissed, but a federal appeals court panel reversed that decision. Lawyers for the student and Shawnee State have requested a rehearing from the full court.
It is sad that something as simple — and decent — as getting students’ pronouns right has to be litigated and politicized. More than anyone, teachers should know that students do better when they are treated with respect, when their names are pronounced correctly, when they are not made to feel awkward or isolated from their classmates. Teachers who don’t recognize as much probably shouldn’t be in the classroom in the first place.
Read more: Katrina vanden Heuvel: As Pride Month begins, Republicans double down on restricting transgender Americans Megan Rapinoe: Bills to ban transgender kids from sports try to solve a problem that doesn’t exist Alexandra Petri: I am trying to report gender infractions in my kindergarten but don’t know what counts! Darren Rosenblum: Misgendering students is not ‘academic freedom.’ It’s an abuse of power.
