“This lamentable decision can lead to hostile treatment of transgender students and studies have shown that bullying and harassment can be detrimental to the emotional and physical well-being of teenagers,” said Ros-Lehtinen in a statement.
Ros-Lehtinen, along with congressman Jared Polis from Colorado, introduced SNDA back in 2015, which prohibits schools from “discriminating against students based on actual or perceived sexual orientation or identity” and forces them to create a code of conduct against discrimination.
“Evidence has shown that acceptance of transgender students lowers their risk of suicide,” continued Ros-Lehtinen in her statment.
Ros-Lehtinen’s son, Rodrigo, is transgender. Last year, Ros-Lehtinen and her family created a series of public service announcements (see video above) showing support for her son’s transition.
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This article appears in Feb 22-28, 2017.
