MORNING NEWSBREAK | S.C. Superintendent of Education Ellen Weaver is recommending that state school districts disregard new federal rules that would expanded the definition of sex discrimination under Title IX to protect gay, lesbian and transgender (LGBTQ) students.
Weaver wrote in a memo that frames herself as a defender of S.C. schools from “divisive distractions from Washinngton” that she expects the rules to be swiftly challenged in the courts before they take effect Aug. 1.
“South Carolina students are not pawns to be sacrificed in cynical political gambits,” Weaver wrote. “Accordingly, our state will defend the inherent dignity of every person, while refusing to upend long-standing federal law, violate common sense, or acquiesce to radical attempts to redefine biological reality by bureaucratic diktat.”
The new rules would mean schools could not treat students differently than their peers based on sexual orientation or gender identity. This could, for example, upend school policies that require transgender students to use the bathroom that conforms to their sex determined at birth.
Advocates for the LGBTQ community in South Carolina slammed Weaver’s memo, arguing that the superintendent is endorsing discrimination.
“Once again, Superintendent Weaver puts her political perspectives ahead of the kids she is supposed to serve,” said ACLU of South Carolina Executive Director Jace Woodrum. “In addition to encouraging districts to ignore federal regulations — and putting our underfunded schools at risk of losing critically needed dollars — her letter suggests transgender kids don’t exist and shouldn’t be protected from discrimination. This rhetoric is yet another example of her callous approach to serving our students.”
The ACLU also points to other efforts from Weaver and GOP S.C. lawmakers that would do more harm than good for LGBTQ students, including a push for an “overly broad” book-banning policy (Regulation R. 43-170) that would empower anti-LGBTQ+ groups to purge books from our schools and a classroom censorship bill (H. 3728) that would restrict the ability of teachers to discuss gender inequality in a classroom setting.
In other headlines of note:
CP NEWS: Celebrate independent bookstore day in Charleston April 27. Three Charleston bookstores will participate in this year’s Independent Bookstore Day, which takes place at indie bookstores across the nation on the last Saturday in April, an effort to bring together readers and authors to celebrate and uplift independent bookstores.
S.C. Senate approves $15.4B budget after debate on bathrooms, conference switching. The South Carolina Senate has approved its budget with a final vote Wednesday after approving items like requiring school children use the bathrooms of their sex assigned at birth and whether universities can spend state money to move to another athletic conference.
Charleston prepping TIF district for Union Pier site to fund improvements, infrastructure. Charleston City Council approved initial stages of tax increment financing — commonly called by the acronym TIF — for Union Pier site to help pay for public amenities and infrastructure.
Search continues for Charleston man missing in Mexico for 3 weeks. The ongoing search for Brad Solomon, who has been missing in Mexico since April 3, remains focused on remote areas of Cozumel, where he disembarked from a cruise ship and did not return.
Charleston, other S.C. cities can breathe easier than places out West. Charleston, Florence and other cities in South Carolina have some of the cleanest air in the country, according to a new report that normally scolds cities and counties for pollution that can worsen health.
Developers share renderings of coming entertainment, retail space in Mount Pleasant. After years of planning for a new entertainment venue in Mount Pleasant, that idea is one step closer to life as developers presented new renderings of the space called Gather Mount Pleasant to town officials.
Boeing running out of parts for its S.C.-built Dreamliners. Boeing is slowing production of the 787 jets it builds in North Charleston because of parts shortages, including a key component that’s been affected by the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
Isle of Palms working to restore heavily eroded sand dunes. The dunes of the barrier island will receive support from the city and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers this year.
- To get dozens of South Carolina news stories every business day, contact the folks at SC Clips.
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