WASHINGTON — The Trump administration sued California Wednesday after a Department of Education probe found the state had discriminated against women by “allowing males in girls’ sports and intimate spaces.”
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division alleged that the California Department of Education (CDE) and California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) violated Title IX and forced girls to be “displaced from podiums, denied awards, and miss out on critical visibility for scholarships and recognition,” according to the complaint filed in Los Angeles federal court.
“This discrimination is not only illegal and unfair but also demeaning, signaling to girls that their opportunities and achievements are secondary to accommodating boys,” the filing stated.
“It erodes the integrity of girls’ sports, diminishes their competitive experience, and undermines the very purpose of Title IX: to provide equal access to educational benefits, including interscholastic athletics.”
The complaint demanded a court order barring the policies, compensation for “female athletes who have been denied equal athletic opportunities … including correcting past athletics records” and a requirement that California turn in “regular compliance reports” for at least the next five years.
The DOJ’s complaint noted that California’s compliance was necessary since the $44.3 billion in federal funding the state received this fiscal year was conditioned upon compliance with Title IX.
The 1972 law mandates equal opportunities regardless of sex in schools receiving federal funds.
The suit comes after transgender athlete Lia Thomas was stripped of University of Pennsylvania swimming titles after the Ivy League school bowed to pressure from the Trump administration.
Penn also agreed to issue formal apologies to every biological female competitor who lost out to a transgender competitor, following an Education Department probe of the university.
A similar investigation led to CIF being ordered by July 7 to “restore to female athletes all individual records, titles, and awards misappropriated by male athletes competing in female competitions” — or face “imminent enforcement action.”
Katie McGuinness, a female long jumper, had placed second against a trans athlete at the CIF’s Southern Section Final in May, before the findings of the investigation were announced.
The feds, upon finishing their probe also asked the CDE to “send a personalized letter apologizing on behalf of the state of California for allowing [McGuinness’] educational experience to be marred by sex discrimination.”
“Women fought hard for these rights and it is the law and the president means business with it,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon told Fox News Wednesday.
CIF governs more than 750,000 student-athletes in grades 9 through 12, per the DOJ.
Nearly 6 million K-12 athletes compete for titles in the Golden State, fewer than 10 of whom are transgender, a state official previously noted.
California is one of more than 20 states that allows athletes to compete in sports that comport with their chosen “gender identity” — despite President Trump having signed an executive order in February barring the policy and threatening to pull federal funding to those states that persisted.
“The Governor of California has previously admitted that it is ‘deeply unfair’ to force women and girls to compete with men and boys in competitive sports,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement.
“But not only is it ‘deeply unfair,’ it is also illegal under federal law. This Department of Justice will continue its fight to protect equal opportunities for women and girls in sports.”
Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom had acknowledged the “issue of fairness” but stopped short of calling for a ban on transgender athletes participating in women’s sports during a debate with Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk on his “This is Gavin Newsom” podcast in March.
During a visit to the early primary state of South Carolina Tuesday, the California governor admitted that he “struggled with the issue of fairness when it came to sports.”
“We tried to figure that out a couple of years ago, and we were unsuccessful, and we struggled with that recently,” Newsom said at the time.
“My position is that I don’t think it’s fair, but I also think it’s demeaning to talk down to people, and to belittle the trans community. And I don’t like the way the right wing talks about the trans community. These people just want to survive.”
Most Americans — including up to 69% of Democrats — support sex-segregated sports participation, a New York Times poll found in January.
Studies have also found that transgender female athletes maintain a competitive advantage over their biological female peers even after undergoing hormone therapy.
“The CIF does not comment on legal matters,” a rep for the athletic governing body said in a statement.
Newsom’s office and the California Department of Education did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“The California Department of Education cannot comment on pending litigation,” a rep for the state office also said.
A Newsom spokesperson pointed out that no court has yet adopted the Trump administration’s interpretation of federal law and California is abiding by an existing state law “passed in 2013, signed by Governor Jerry Brown, and in line with 21 other states.”
“At a time when the Trump administration is withholding billions in funds for education, this ongoing attack is a cynical attempt to distract from the Trump administration’s defunding of nearly 3 million girls enrolled in California’s public school,” the rep added.
