Maine and 15 other states have filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for threatening to withhold sex education funding from programs that reference "gender ideology."
The plaintiffs allege that the federal government is attempting to target transgender and gender-diverse youth by erasing comprehensive sex education programming for entire categories of students.
Lynette Johnson is a spokesperson for Maine Family Planning.
"Sex education goes well beyond, for example, using condoms. It's about young people learning how to build healthy relationships, recognize patterns of abuse, respect the boundaries of others and practice responsible decision making," Johnson said.
Johnson said the government is threatening $250,000 in funding for sex education in community-based settings for young people who weren't able to receive it in schools.
The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Oregon.
