An Ontario teen who was suspended from school after supporting female students concerned over transgender students using the girls’ bathroom is asking the court to review the school board’s decision.
Josh Alexander was initially suspended from St. Joseph’s Catholic High School, which is part of the Renfrew County Catholic District School Board (RCCDSB) in Ontario, in November 2022 after expressing his view that there are only two genders.
He also organized a student walkout to protest biological boys being permitted to use the girls’ bathroom.
The school later changed Mr. Alexander’s suspension to an “exclusion” from school, which has the same effect but is considered non-disciplinary.
“It was held entirely in secret. Nobody was allowed access to it besides me and Josh,” he said. “Josh and I weren’t even allowed to publish our legal arguments.”
They are now asking the Ontario Superior Court to review the school board’s decision, which was issued on Dec. 18.
“Nobody knows the reasons why the school board has upheld the exclusions and suspensions,” Mr. Kitchen said at the time. “They can’t test the panel’s reasons. They can’t review them and think about them, comment on them, and critique them.”
The school board said it isn’t commenting on the issue at this time.
Testimony at Hearing
Mr. Kitchen said that Mr. Alexander and a female Grade 12 student gave testimony to support his case during the school board hearing.The Epoch Times has opted not to publish the student’s name. She previously told The Epoch Times she was uncomfortable after an experience with a transgender student in the girls’ washroom at the school.
The student talked about when she saw the transgender student enter the girls’ washroom for the first time when she was in Grade 11.
“I was just in that bathroom, in my bathroom, and then a transgender male walked in after me,” she said. “That kind of really caught me off guard, because I didn’t even really know at that point that he self-identified as female.”
She said that after she heard some of her friends talking about how “weird” it was, she decided to say something to school officials.
“It’s for my own privacy and safety that I felt like I had to say something at that point.”
She said she told Mr. Alexander about it and also went to the school principal who she said was “very polite about it.”
“He said he appreciated me for coming forward and it’s important for him to hear both sides of the story and all that, but I didn’t really get the sense that he was going to actually do anything about it.”
