Crowd packs Deerfield school board meeting amid transgender locker room dispute

DEERFIELD, Ill. - A large crowd packed a Deerfield middle school and spilled onto the sidewalk Thursday night as tensions flared over an alleged locker room incident involving a transgender student. 

While the Deerfield District 109 school board made no decision, the meeting drew dozens of speakers — many of them LGBTQ+ advocates — in a show of support that was met with repeated applause.

What we know:

The controversy centers around a 13-year-old girl who alleged earlier this year that she was forced to change in front of a transgender classmate or face disciplinary action.

District 109 said it is following state and federal laws that allow students to use locker rooms and bathrooms aligned with their gender identity.

In response to the public outcry, the district said in a statement:

"We are sensitive to the privacy needs of all our middle school students and ensure that no student is required to change into a gym uniform for physical education class in front of others. When both our middle schools were renovated in 2017, we added five private changing stations within each locker room that are available to all students. All students have multiple options to change in a private location separate from the locker room if they wish," the district said. 

Still, the girl’s family is calling for changes — including restricting access to bathrooms and locker rooms based on biological sex.

District officials said they "strongly dispute the patently false allegations that students were forced to change in front of administrators or others" and added they will "vigorously support administrators and staff every step of the way."

What's next:

The district also condemned threats reportedly made toward school administrators, saying no one should be targeted for complying with the law. 

The girl’s mother has filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice.