On May 12, the Obama Administration released a directive which detailed the federal government’s interpretation of Title IX in regards to transgender students. The directive states that publicly funded schools must provide a “safe and nondiscriminatory environment” for such students by using their preferred pronouns, allowing them to use the bathrooms and locker rooms that conform to their gender identity,  as well as other sex-segregated school activities such as housing and certain classes. In addition, transgender students should not be required to provide proof of their gender through medical diagnosis or proof of treatment. Although the directive is not technically legally binding, schools that do not comply could potentially lose the federal funding that they receive.

The directive itself is a leap in the right direction for making schools a safer environment for trans students. The directive is especially important following the passing of the North Carolina “Bathroom Law,” which prohibits anyone from using a bathroom that is not consistent with the sex that they were assigned at birth, a bill that has been proposed in several other states including Arizona, Texas, Florida, and Kentucky. What has been disheartening  is the reaction by many states to the directive, which has been uncannily similar to Southern resistance to the end of segregated schools during the 1960s. The most absurd, but also widespread opposition to the directive comes from a sense of fear of anyone who is transgender. First, transgender people are not a threat. In a recent study conducted by the UCLA School of Law, over 70 percent of transgender individuals reported receiving harassment for using the bathroom of their assigned sex, while a shocking 10% had experienced physical assault. Another study done by the National Coalition of Anti Violence Programs (NCAVP) found that 72% of hate violence homicides in 2013 were of trans women. It is obviously not cisgender people have cause for fear.

Another reason that the states favoring “Bathroom Laws” give for refusing to follow the directive  is over the fear that predators will somehow use it in order to prey on children. The reality is, that child predators are not shady men in overcoats who abduct children. According to the US Department of Justice, only ten percent of sexually abused children are abused by strangers. The rest are family, friends, and other acquaintances. There is no doubt that child abuse is a horrific and very real problem, but forcing transgender people to use bathrooms and locker rooms that do conflict with their gender identity does nothing to solve the problem. Instead, it removers attention from where child abuse is really occurring.

Finally, none of the eighteen states that have already adopted laws nondiscrimination laws have reported rises in the rates of sexual violence, according to a coalition of hundreds of organizations who work with survivors of sexual violence. Therefore, there is absolutely no evidence that allowing transgender people to use the bathroom of their choice will have anything but a positive effect. The arguments against the directive and for “Bathroom Laws” such as the one passed in North Carolina are nothing more than an attempt to hide the rampant transphobia. The White House Directive is no more of an overreach than Eisenhower’s forced desegregation of Little Rock schools. It is the duty of all schools to make their students feel comfortable and safe, and that is exactly what enacting the measures set out in the directive will do.