A lawsuit has been filed in the federal Middle District of Florida, claiming that certain restroom rules are discriminatory and violate free-speech rights. This legal action is the latest in a series of challenges to laws and regulations enacted by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ administration and the Legislature, which have negatively impacted transgender individuals and the LGBTQ community.

The main issue in this case revolves around a law called HB 1521, passed in the spring, which governs the use of restrooms and changing facilities in schools and “public buildings” like government buildings, airports, prisons, and jails. If someone uses these facilities in a way that doesn’t align with their sex assigned at birth and refuses to leave when asked, they could face criminal trespass charges.

The plaintiffs in this lawsuit argue that this perspective on gender and sex is harmful to transgender, gender nonconforming, and certain intersex individuals because it doesn’t recognize their gender identity, which may differ from their sex assigned at birth. They contend that the law hinders them from openly expressing their genuine gender identity and compels them to adhere to the state’s perspective on sex and gender.

Around 1,000 people are expected to participate in the National March to Protect Trans Youth in downtown Orlando on October 7, 2023, according to the lawsuit. The plaintiffs are genuinely concerned about their ability to exercise their right to protest and freedom of expression during their time in Florida from October 2, 2023, through October 8, 2023.They argue that the law obstructs their ability to freely express their authentic gender identity and obliges them to conform to the state’s stance on sex and gender.

The lawsuit names several law enforcement officials in the Orlando area as defendants, as well as other entities like Florida Department of Transportation Secretary Jared Perdue, Thomas Draper (chief of operations for the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority, which oversees Orlando International Airport), and Alex Martins (chairman of the University of Central Florida Board of Trustees, where march organizers intend to spend several hours).

The lawsuit aims to protect march participants and other nonbinary and transgender individuals, as explained by Zee Scout, an attorney with the Center for Constitutional Rights representing the plaintiffs.

Critics argue that these laws discriminate against transgender individuals and infringe upon their rights, while Governor DeSantis presents them as measures to protect children and women. Yet, transgender individuals and their supporters strongly object to these limitations, perceiving them as unjustly singling out and isolating their community.