Students at a Berks County school district testified Monday in a federal court case in which students are claiming the school’s transgender-inclusive policies violated their privacy. Two of four students suing the Boyertown Area School District and one trans student presented their cases at an evidentiary hearing in Easton.
The two cisgender students, a male and a female, testified their privacy was being violated and constituted it as sexual harassment. The male student, identified as Joel Doe, recalled a situation in October in which he saw a trans male student getting changed in the locker room.
“Someone next to me tapped me on my shoulder and said, ‘Turn around,’” Doe testified, according to The Morning Call. “I turned around and saw a girl standing there.
“I scrambled to get everything into the locker as fast as I could so I could get out of there,” he added.
The Alliance Defending Freedom and the Independence Law Center are representing all four cis students suing the school district. Neither organization responded to requests for comment.
Additionally, the American Civil Liberties Union provided representation to the Pennsylvania Youth Congress, which is intervening to defend the rights of trans students in the district.
Aidan DeStefano, a trans male student whose rights could be affected if the cis students win the lawsuit, also testified.
“I made sure that my peers were OK with me going into that bathroom,” the 18-year-old testified, according to a Penn Live story. “I never got any questions at all, because this is who I am.”
While DeStefano graduated in June, he contended in court documents that he would still use the school’s facilities on certain occasions. His younger sister will be a senior at the school, DeStefano said in a supplemental declaration, as will several close friends.
“I may want to come back to campus for other events where alumni and visitors are welcome, as I will be attending college in the area and will have many friends still attending BASH,” he wrote.
Another hearing will be held Aug. 11.