Mississippi Bill Protecting Teachers Who Misgender Their Students (HB 1176)

HB 1176 would protect licensed school employees from being dismissed or suspended for refusing to use the correct pronouns when referring to a transgender student.

The bill would protect teachers or staff that refer to a student’s biological sex as identified at birth, despite a student’s preference “after undergoing stages of transition as a pansexual, transsexual or transgender whether through sex reassignment, gender identity transitioning, hormonal therapy treatment or other philosophical processes.”

The bill provides that no superintendent of schools, their administrative designee or any principal may require any licensed employee to comply with any directive to use a student’s preferred method of reference against the employee’s sincerely held religious belief or moral conviction which it claims is protected under the 2016 law, “Protecting Freedom of Conscience From Government Discrimination Act” (HB 1523).

The bill would redefine the term “state government” to include public school districts and charter schools.

Related Legislation

The bill uses HB 1523 (2016) as basis for establishing the right to misgender students.

Latest Action

1/21/19 – Introduced; referred to Education Committee.

2/5/19 – Died in committee.

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