National
Dept. of Education dismisses charges of anti-LGBTQ discrimination at BYU
Biden administration rules on religious exemption under Title IX
The Biden administration has dismissed charges of alleging anti-LGBTQ discrimination against students at Brigham Young University on the basis that the religious exemption under Title IX prohibits changes against the school.
In a letter dated Feb. 8 and obtained Friday by the Washington Blade, an official with the Office of Civil Rights informs Brigham Young University President Kevin Worthen the Department of Education is “dismissing this complaint” pursuant to the religious exemption under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972.
“Because the University is exempt from the above-referenced regulatory provisions of Title IX to the extent that application of those provisions conflict with the religious tenets of its controlling religious organization, OCR lacks jurisdiction to address the complaintās allegations,” writes Sandra Roesti, supervisory attorney with the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights.
The Department of Education letter emphasizes the determination is the result of “an individual OCR case,” therefore should not be considered as “a formal statement of OCR policy and should not be relied upon, cited, or construed as such.”
The initial complaint, which the letter was filed on March 9, 2020, challenged alleged Brigham Young University engages in the different treatment of students who are involved in same-sex romantic relationships by stating that such relationships are not compatible with the principles of the Universityās Honor Code. The filer of complaint isn’t identified.
Brigham Young University in an organizational statement stated the dismissal of charges against the Mormon university were no surprise because the U.S. government has consistently recognized the religious exemption under Title IX applies to the school.
“BYU had anticipated that OCR would dismiss the complaint because OCR has repeatedly recognized BYUās religious exemption for Title IX requirements that are not consistent with the religious tenets of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,” the statement says.
According to Brigham Young University, the school wasn’t aware of the complaint until Oct. 21, 2021, when the Office of Civil Rights gave the case had been opened. The school asserted its religious exemption and outlined relevant religious tenets of the Church of Jesus Christ, concluding the response from the Department of Education demonstrates the university “has a religious exemption that applies to this issue.”
As a religiously affiliated university with a history of a hostile climate toward LGBTQ students, Brigham Young University has recently come under scrutiny for its policies. The school banned all protests from students on Y Mountain, a social place for students, after pro-LGBTQ students lit it up in rainbow colors, according to a media reports.
Paul Carlos Southwick, director of pro-LGBTQ student group known as the Religious Exemption Accountability Project, said in a statement the Department of Education’s dismissal of the charges “is another example of the federal government siding with discrimination and powerful institutions like BYU at the expense of vulnerable LGBTQ+ students.”
“By dismissing this investigation, the federal government has not only dashed the hopes of many LGBTQ+ students who saw the investigation as a sign of good things to come, but it has placed the governmentās stamp of approval on BYUās discriminatory practices, which the government not only funds, but has now formally handed out a license to discriminate,” Southwick said.
State Department
State Department travel advisory warns of potential anti-LGBTQ violence
FBI issued similar warning this week
The State Department on Friday issued a worldwide travel advisory that warns of potential violence against LGBTQ people and LGBTQ-specific events.
“Due to the potential for terrorist attacks, demonstrations, or violent actions against U.S. citizens and interests, the Department of State advises U.S. citizens overseas to exercise increased caution,” reads the advisory. “The Department of State is aware of the increased potential for foreign terrorist organization-inspired violence against LGBTQI+ persons and events and advises U.S. citizens overseas to exercise increased caution.”
The advisory further urges U.S. citizens to:
- Stay alert in locations frequented by tourists, including Pride celebrations and venues frequented by LGBTQI+ persons.
- Enroll in theĀ Smart Traveler Enrollment ProgramĀ (STEP)Ā to receive information and alerts and make it easier to locate you in an emergency overseas.
- Follow the Department of State onĀ FacebookĀ andĀ Twitter.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Homeland Security Investigations earlier this week issued a similar advisory.
The advisory notes June 12 will mark eight years since the massacre at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla.
The White House
White House acknowledges IDAHOBiT, reiterates support for global LGBTQ rights
WHO on May 17, 1990, declassified homosexuality as a mental illness
The Biden-Harris administration on Friday used the annual International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia to reiterate its support of LGBTQ and intersex rights around the world.
“On the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia, my administration stands in support and solidarity with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI+) people around the world as they seek to live full lives, free from violence and discrimination,” said President Joe Biden in a statement. “This is a matter of human rights, plain and simple.”
“The United States applauds those individuals and groups worldwide working to defend the rights of LGBTQI+ people wherever they are under threat,” he added. “We are grateful for the contributions that LGBTQI+ people make every day across our nation.”
Secretary of State Antony Blinken echoed Biden.
“On this day, we reflect upon the violence and discrimination lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI+) persons worldwide suffer and re-commit ourselves to opposing these acts,” said Blinken in his own statement. “This year, like every year, we state unequivocally: LGBTQI+ persons deserve recognition of their universal human rights and human dignity.”
IDAHOBiT commemorates the World Health Organization’s declassification of homosexuality as a mental disorder on May 17, 1990.
Blinken in his statement notes LGBTQ and intersex people around the world “continue to face insidious forms of stigma and discrimination.”
Dominica last month became the latest country to decriminalize consensual same-sex sexual relations. Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni in May 2023 signed his country’s Anti-Homosexuality Act that, among other things, contains a death penalty provision for “aggravated homosexuality.”
“Even as more countries make meaningful advancements towards full equality; LGBTQI+ persons continue to be sentenced to death for daring to live their sexual orientation or gender identity, subjected to coercive conversion ‘therapies’ and ‘normalization’ surgeries, discriminated against while receiving health services, restricted from exercising fundamental freedoms, and denied the dignity of same-sex partnership and fulfillment of family,” said Blinken.
“As we reflect upon the injustices that LGBTQI+ persons and their allies endure, we must not forget that today is fundamentally a day of action,” he added. “On this day and every day, the United States stands with LGBTQI+ persons around the world. We will continue to advocate for the rights of LGBTQI+ persons not just because we have a moral imperative to do so, but because it helps to strengthen democracy, bolster national security, and promote global health and economic development.”
The Tonga Leitis Association is among the myriad LGBTQ and intersex rights groups around the world that acknowledged IDAHOBiT.
š Today, we honor IDAHOBIT with the Tonga Leitis Association. We celebrate love, advocate for equality, and strive for a more inclusive Tonga. Join us in supporting equal rights for all and the journey towards acceptance. #IDAHOBIT2024 #TLA š³ļøāš
— Tonga Leitis Association (@LeitisTonga) May 16, 2024
Federal Government
Biden-Harris administration takes major step toward reclassifying marijuana
New regulations could lessen criminal penalties for cannabis
The U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday took a major step toward loosening the federal government’s regulation of marijuana by issuing a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to the Drug Enforcement Administration, which outlines a proposal to reclassify it under the federal Controlled Substances Act.
The move comes pursuant to the Biden-Harris administration’s April 30 announcement of plans to recategorize cannabis as a Schedule III substance, which could substantially lessen the criminal penalties for those convicted of using, possessing, selling, distributing, or cultivating the drug.
A 60-day public comment period will begin after the NPRM is published on the Federal Register, along with a concurrent review of the proposed regulatory reforms by an administrative law judge assigned by the DEA.
Since the CSA was passed in 1971, cannabis has been listed under Schedule I, the category reserved for drugs that are considered to be the most dangerous and lacking any currently accepted medical use in the U.S.
In a press release, a senior administration official noted that “marijuana is currently classified higher than fentanyl and meth ā the drugs driving our Nationās overdose epidemic.”
President Joe Biden posted a video on X in which he said the proposal to house cannabis under the Schedule III regulatory regime constitutes “an important move towards reversing longstanding inequities.”
“Todayās announcement builds on the work weāve already done to pardon a record number of federal offenses for simple possession of marijuana,” the president said. “It adds to the action weāve taken to lift barriers to housing, employment, small business loans, and more for tens of thousands of Americans.”
“Look folks no one should be in jail for merely using or possessing marijuana,” Biden said. “Period.”
The president added, “Far too many lives have been upended because of a failed approach to marijuana and Iām committed to righting those wrongs. You have my word on it.”
Too many lives have been upended because of our failed approach to marijuana.
— President Biden (@POTUS) May 16, 2024
So today, the @TheJusticeDept is taking the next step to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug under federal law.
Here's what that means: pic.twitter.com/TMztSyyFYm
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