(NORTH RIVERSIDE) The parents of a transgender boy have filed a petition against a west suburban elementary school district, claiming officials have discriminated against him by not allowing him to use boys’ restrooms.
The parents filed the petition Thursday in Cook County Circuit Court, seeking an injunction against Komarek School District 94 in North Riverside.
Their child, a third-grader, was designated female at birth but was diagnosed with gender dysphoria and has identified as a boy since December 2013, the petition says.
The parents contacted the school social worker in January 2015 about their child’s change in gender identity, and since then he has participated in all school activities as a male, according to the petition.
However, school administrators barred him from the boys’ restroom and instead arranged for him to use a bathroom designated for adult faculty and staff, causing him anxiety and depression “surrounding his lack of complete acceptance as a boy at the school,” the petition says.
“We work with every family to support the unique needs of our students,” a district spokesman said in a statement Friday. “In doing so, our paramount concern is maintaining a supportive and safe learning environment for all of our students.”
The parents filed a discrimination complaint with the Illinois Department of Human Rights, which certified their case last week as a civil rights violation, the petition says.
They are seeking an injunction that would allow the child to use the boys’ restroom for the upcoming school year, which starts Aug. 26.
