Virginia school retreats from proposed cross-dressing ban

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

Virginia school retreats from proposed cross-dressing ban

By Matthew A. Ward

PORTSMOUTH, Virginia | Tue Mar 6, 2012 4:50pm EST

(Reuters) - A Virginia school district backed down from a plan to ban cross-gender dress by students after civil liberties and gay rights groups criticized the measure, and one threatened to sue.

School board members proposed the ban in early February, saying they wanted to protect children in the school district in Suffolk, about 20 miles from Norfolk, from killings and suicides tied to bullying in other parts of the country.

The original wording prohibited students from wearing clothing "not in keeping with a student's gender" and that "causes a disruption and/or distracts others from the education process or poses a health or safety concern."

New wording released ahead of an expected school board vote on Thursday would ban students from wearing clothing causing "a substantial disruption and/or (which) substantially distracts from the education process, or poses a serious health or safety concern."

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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/06/us-virginia-crossdressing-idUSTRE8251QR20120306

[longship]

1. Isn't bullying a bigger distraction?

To say nothing about disruption!

Screw any school or district which does not have a strong and explicit anti-bullying policy which is stringently enforced.