57 | Transgender Athletes and Sex Discrimination: The BPJ v West Virginia Supreme Court Showdown

Can a state prohibit transgender students from participating on teams that align with their gender identity? Does Title IX, a law that was passed in 1972 and says nothing about transgender individuals, protect those individuals in 2025? Are you ready to talk about our next Supreme Court saga? On today’s episode, we’re going to talk about another consequential education-related Supreme Court case! And it’s safe to say that we’ve had several potentially consequential ones lately. This Court has not been too shy about taking up some big issues over the last decade or so. And we’ve finally, for better or worse, come to the first Supreme Court case about transgender student athletes. We’re talking about the case of Becky Pepper Jackson (BPJ), a transgender girl, who was barred by state law from participating on a girls’ sports team. This went back and forth in the lower courts, with BPJ ultimately winning at the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. West Virginia wasn’t happy with that, so they petitioned the Supreme Court, which agreed to take up the case along with another similar case, Little v. Hecox. So, here we are. At the time of this recording, the date for oral argument hadn't been set, but we now know it's set for January 13! We’re going to give you all the background today, so you’re ready to ride this roller coaster with us during this Supreme Court session! We also talk about a case out of Michigan involving some students who got in trouble for wearing "Let's Go Brandon" shirts to school. --- Please check out our updated website (www.chalkandgavel.com) to sign up for our newsletter, for our teaching guide, OUR NEW MERCH, and for ways to support the show!Lastly - some exciting news: Chalk and Gavel was selected to record a live episode at SXSW-EDU in March! We're pumped about this one! --- Keywords: Transgender Student Athletes, LGBTQ Issues, Title IX, Equal Protection Clause, First Amendment, Student Free Speech#educationlaw #k12 #podcast #ChalkandGavel #LGBTQ