(NewsNation) — A Mississippi school district has adopted a new dress code that specifically mandates transgender students must dress in a manner that is consistent with the gender they were assigned at birth.
The Harrison County School Board issued the new guidelines with specific sections related to gender. According to the Sun Herald, the first paper to report on the guidelines, the decision came after a lawsuit filed by a trans student in the district.
The school forbade her to wear a dress to graduation, although she identifies as female, because she was assigned male at birth. The student ultimately missed her high school graduation due to the dress code.
The new guidelines for students include specific, separate dress code rules for boys and girls, as opposed to previous versions which had one dress code for all students. Mississippi Today reports the new guidelines specify boys must wear shorts or pants, while girls may wear shorts, pants, dresses or skirts.
Mississippi is one of several states that has passed anti-transgender legislation in recent years. The state legislature has prohibited trans girls from participating in girls’ sports and passed a law limiting access to gender-affirming care for minors.