LGBTQ+ Rights

Everyone has the right to live their lives free from discrimination and harassment – regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. We work to protect the rights of all LGBTQ+ Virginians.

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What you need to know

More than half of LGBTQ+ students in Virginia have experienced bullying at school, according to the Virginia Department of Health.

12 anti-trans bills were introduced in Virginia's legislature in 2023, more than any previous year and the seventh-highest number in the nation.

More than 1 in 3 LGBTQ+ Americans faced discrimination in the last year according to a 2020 CAP study.

Everyone has the right to live their lives free from discrimination and harassment – regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. We work in the courts, in the legislature, and in our communities to protect the rights of all LGBTQ+ Virginians.

 

Since the ACLU of Virginia was established in 1969, we’ve worked with brave, determined partners and clients to secure key rights for LGBTQ+ people in our Commonwealth and beyond:

 

And we won’t stop. We will keep pushing forward until all LGBTQ+ Virginians have equal rights in our laws and in practice.

In recent years, lawmakers and school boards have used their positions of power to target trans people, especially trans youth. We need your help to stem this hateful tide.

MAKE A DONATION today or VOLUNTEER to join the movement for LGBTQ+ equality.


GAVIN’S STORY

At the end of his freshman year of high school, Gavin Grimm came out to his parents as transgender. His family and healthcare providers supported him and affirmed his identity. The next school year – armed with letters from his doctors and a new name – he walked into Gloucester High School as his true self. He used the boys’ restroom without incident for seven weeks. Then the school board got involved.

 

The Gloucester County School Board held a public meeting where Gavin’s personal medical information was openly debated. After that meeting, the school board passed a policy prohibiting students with “gender identity issues” from using the same restrooms as other boys and girls.

 

So we sued.

 

Together with Gavin and ACLU National, we filed a lawsuit against the school board that went all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court – twice. Again and again, judges affirmed that Gavin and all trans students have the right to use bathroom facilities corresponding to their gender identity.

 

After six long years of fighting in court, Gavin won his case, long after he graduated high school. Now, he continues to advocate for trans youth as an activist and author.

 

As a result of Gavin’s courage and determination, judges affirmed that all trans students in the Fourth Circuit – including Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Maryland – have a constitutionally protected right to use bathroom facilities in line with their gender identity.

The Latest

News & Commentary
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Guidance for Virginia's LGBTQIA+ Communities After Trump's Election

News & Commentary
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Virginia's First-Ever Trans Joy Zine

Too often, stories about trans and nonbinary people focus on grief and trauma. But trans people deserve stories that recognize the fullness of our humanity. That’s why we brought together 13 trans and nonbinary storytellers to tell their OWN stories — stories of love, family, and community — in Celebrating Trans Joy: Building Communities' 100+ pages of beautifully illustrated comic strips.
Press Release
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Liberty University sued for firing Ellenor Zinski for being transgender

“No one should be fired because of who they are – but Liberty University made it clear that’s exactly why it fired Ellenor,” said ACLU of Virginia Senior Transgender Rights Attorney Wyatt Rolla.
Issue Areas: LGBTQ+ Rights
News & Commentary
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Gavin Grimm Speaks in Congress on Transgender Rights Issues

On April 6, 2017, our client Gavin Grimm attended the "Civil Rights Under the Trump Administration-The First 100 Days" forum held by members of the House of Representatives to speak about his case and the fight for transgender rights, which is gaining momentum across the nation.
Court Case
Jul 29, 2024

Zinski v. Liberty University

On July 29, 2024 the ACLU of Virginia and Butler Curwood filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of Ellenor Zinski, whom Liberty University fired in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 after she disclosed her identity as a trans woman.
Court Case
Jul 03, 2024

Doe v. Hanover County School Board

On July 3, 2024 ACLU of Virginia and WilmerHale filed a Title IX lawsuit in the Eastern District of Virginia on behalf of “Janie Doe,” a transgender student whom Hanover County Public School blocked from playing on a sports team for which she tried out and qualified.
Court Case
Feb 15, 2024

Doe v. VDOE; Loe v. VDOE

On February 15, 2024, the ACLU of Virginia and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP filed two separate lawsuits against the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) on behalf of two transgender students who have been harmed by the department’s 2023 Model Policies on Ensuring Privacy, Dignity, and Respect for All Students and Parents in Virginia’s Public Schools.
Court Case
Dec 08, 2021

Lawsuit Challenging Hanover County School Board's Failure to Protect Transgender Students