Judge dismisses lawsuit by sorority sisters who sought to block a transgender woman from joining

MicroWave@lemmy.world to politics @lemmy.world – 363 points –
Judge dismisses lawsuit by sorority sisters who sought to block a transgender woman from joining
apnews.com

A judge has dismissed a lawsuit contesting a transgender woman’s admission into a sorority at the University of Wyoming, ruling that he could not override how the private, voluntary organization defined a woman and order that she not belong.

In the lawsuit, six members of the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority chapter challenged Artemis Langford’s admission by casting doubt on whether sorority rules allowed a transgender woman. Wyoming U.S. District Court Judge Alan Johnson, in his ruling, found that sorority bylaws don’t define who’s a woman.

The case at Wyoming’s only four-year public university drew widespread attention as transgender people fight for more acceptance in schools, athletics, workplaces and elsewhere, while others push back.

100

You are viewing a single comment

I'm assuming that the majority of members are fine with this, otherwise they'd simply change their bylaws to exclude trans women (and probably get away with doing so for the same legal reason). These 6 members were probably the losers of some internal battle who went to court to try to get their way anyway and failed.

Ah. This makes a whole lot more sense.

I saw this story this morning and could not for the life of me figure out what had happened.

None of it made sense until I saw your comment.

otherwise they'd simply change their bylaws to exclude trans women (and probably get away with doing so for the same legal reason).

I don't think that'd work. Which is why most of the laws we're seeing from shithole states target medical care or other things instead of outright banning them.

Bostock v. Clayton County decided sexual orientation and gender identity fall within the Title VII of the Civil Rights act as under the protected class of "sex". This should decisively prevent anyone from outright discriminating against LGBT+ people, but we know how inventive conservatives get with oppressing others.

This explanation certainly makes me feel the least concerned for the new sister, so I hope so!