It has come to our attention that Columbus City Schools recently implemented a policy that changes transgender students’ names and gender markers to what they were assigned at birth. This decision was made following a new law requiring transgender students in K-12 and the college level to use the bathroom corresponding with their assigned sex at birth–to which CCS also responded by rescinding their previous bathroom policy in compliance.

We strongly condemn CCS not just for going back on their previous bathroom policy, but for going even further than any other Ohio school district by forcibly misgendering and deadnaming their transgender students in their system. No such law requiring this latter policy has been passed in the Ohio legislature. Therefore, there is no legal demand compelling CCS to revert their transgender students’ names and gender markers. This displays both cowardice and blatant disregard for the district’s own students in order to cede further ground to the rampant transphobia in our state’s current administration.

If you support the rights and dignity of transgender students and oppose this deadnaming policy, we ask that you endorse our statement below.