School district requires students to share 'inclusive' locker rooms or face counseling

A Maryland public school district's "Gender Identity" guidelines calls for students who feel uncomfortable sharing a locker room with trans peers to be sent to counseling to "foster understanding of gender identity."

Montgomery County Public Schools services over 166,000 students in 210 schools in the suburbs of the Washington D.C. metro-area, as Maryland's largest school district. The school system's student handbook on gender identity was posted on the "Libs of TikTok" Twitter page, an account dedicated to reposting content from the Left.

Under the "Gender-separated Areas" section of the guideline, it reads "Where facilities are designated by gender, students must be provided access to gender-specific facilities (e.g., bathrooms, locker rooms, and changing rooms) in alignment with their consistently asserted gender identity."

This means that a biologically male student who claims to identify as a female, with no transgender hormone therapy or surgery, may use the girls' restroom and changing facilities.

"Students who are entitled to use a facility consistent with their gender identity cannot be required to use an alternative arrangement," the document continues. "Alternative arrangements should be used only at the request of a student and in a manner that keeps the student’s transgender status confidential."

Of the students who are not comfortable sharing a bathroom or locker room with a member of the opposite sex, the guideline states, "This discomfort is not a reason to deny access to the transgender student. School administrators and counseling staff members should work with students to address their discomfort to foster understanding of gender identity and to create a school culture that respects and values all students."

In addition to this, the document also instructs teachers and staff to keep information related to a student's gender identity, name changes, and pronouns a secret from their parents if they're not supportive of their child's transition. The guidelines vow to “respect the right of students to keep their gender identity or transgender status private and confidential,” including from parents who do not affirm their child’s gender identity. When creating a “Gender Support Plan" for students, teachers are told to work with the student’s family only “if the family is supportive of the student."