Title IX Covers Bias Based on Sexual Orientation, Judge Rules
A federal judge in California has ruled that the federal gender-equity law known as Title IX covers discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, finding that such bias falls under the law’s ban on sex- and gender-based discrimination. The Los Angeles Times reports that the ruling, by Judge Dean D. Pregerson of the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, allows a lawsuit against Pepperdine University that was filed by two members of its women’s basketball team to proceed. The plaintiffs allege that they were harassed because of their sexual orientation. The university had argued that Title IX did not apply to a claim of discrimination for sexual orientation. But Judge Pregerson disagreed, stating that the “actual” orientation of a bias victim is irrelevant.