Biden proposed rules on transgender athletes in school. Then the comment section lost its mind.

Advocates on both sides of the debate on whether to allow transgender students to participate in K-12 and college sports inundated the Education Department with more than 150,000 comments ahead of a Monday deadline to weigh in on its plan for regulating the issue.

The department’s proposed rule would allow schools to ban trans and nonbinary students from participating in sports on a case-by-case basis, infuriating advocates for their participation. They worry that leaves too much room to discriminate against students. But that they would be allowed to join the swim, wrestling or football teams that align with their gender identity in any scenario enraged others who weighed in.

Read from Department of Education’sProposed Title IX rule for transgender sports participation

“As the mother of a teenaged, biological female, it is obvious that biological males should not compete with biological females,” one commenter wrote. “They should never be in the same locker room or restroom.”

But, wrote many others, “transgender youth, just like all youth, simply want to participate in the same educational activities as their peers, including athletics.”

The department has said it is aiming for a middle ground that allows for inclusion and fair competition. Schools should consider, for example, the grade level or education level, to make a final determination. It expects high school and college sports to be more limiting of transgender students’ participation than elementary schools.

“Every student should be able to have the full experience of attending school in America, including participating in athletics, free from discrimination,” Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said in a statement in April that included details of the proposal.

The proposed rule, however, emerges at a fraught political moment: Any federal rule would trump state-level bans that have taken hold at an accelerating speed in nearly two dozen states according to the Movement Advancement Project. Some of the state-level bans, however, have been frozen by the courts, and a federal measure could also face a legal challenge. Transgender rights on other issues, such as access to medical care, are also being curtailed widely. The U.S. House recently passed a GOP-backed measure banning transgender girls and women from school sports participation.

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Advocates for transgender students have applauded the Biden administration for being well-intentioned, yet largely have critiqued the proposal, arguing it doesn’t go far enough to ensure transgender students are protected from discrimination on athletic teams. Some of them have said the wiggle room schools have could further increase discrimination. Others questioned how schools will be held accountable for how they implement the rules.

Those who oppose the proposal said it axes protections for girls and women on school sports teams and could put those students in danger.

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What happens next?

After considering the comments, the department will craft a final regulation.

Once finalized, schools, under the department’s proposal, wouldn’t be able to make blanket bans against allowing transgender and nonbinary students on sports teams. The proposal would alter federal Title IX law, which prohibits sex discrimination in schools that receive federal funding.

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What else did commenters say?

The comments on the department’s proposal are largely mixed, including from prominent education groups and advocates for transgender students. The National Center for Transgender Equality, the National Association of School Psychologists and the National Education Association are part of more than 150 groups that sent a joint letter to Cardona and Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine Lhamon. They believe transgender students should be able to participate on sports teams, but argue the proposal doesn’t go far enough to protect those kids because of the exemptions it allows.

“Restricting students’ ability to participate in school sports consistent with their gender identity institutes a system of gender policing that creates a hostile environment for transgender and cisgender students alike,” their letter says. They want the department to make “clear that categorical bans on participation consistent with gender identity are impermissible,” and argue, “the regulatory text should expressly include this prohibition.”

A review of other comments shows many people who support the department’s argument that transgender and nonbinary students shouldn’t be barred from participating on the sports team they identify with; and should be treated equally to other students. Some agree with the department’s decision to allow schools to their own decisions about what’s right for them.

“All transgender students at every age and in every sport should be presumed eligible to participate in sports consistent with their gender identity,” several comments read.

“Schools can and should take into account differences in grade and education level, level of competition, and sports for purposes of determining which teams ought to be mixed sex,” another reads. “For example, it might be appropriate for schools to designate teams as mixed sex if there is a small number of girls who want to participate on a particular team but there are not enough such girls to create a female-only team.”

In opposition to the rule, multiple comments say the proposed policy “presents serious risks to students’ safety and undermines the spirit of fairness in athletics.” Others show concern about transgender or nonbinary students using locker rooms that align with their gender identity.