Executive Order 13988

{{Short description|Executive order issued by U.S. President Joe Biden on sex discrimination}}

{{Infobox U.S. Presidential Document

| executiveorder =

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| type = Executive order

| summary = Requires all federal agencies to extend existing protections on the basis of sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity

| signedpresident = Joe Biden

| signeddate = {{Start date|2021|01|20}}

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| longtitle = "Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation"

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| depictioncaption = President Biden signs a series of Executive Orders amongst which was order 13988 shortly after his inauguration on January 20, 2021.

| depiction = Biden1stExecutiveOrders.png

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| name = Executive Order 13988

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Executive Order 13988, officially titled Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation, was the fourth executive order signed by U.S. President Joe Biden on January 20, 2021.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2021/01/21/biden-executive-order-transgender-lgbtq/|url-status=live|title=Biden calls for LGBTQ protections in Day 1 executive order, angering conservatives|last1=Schmidt|first1=Samantha|last2=Wax-Thibodeaux|first2=Emily|last3=Balingit|first3=Moriah|date=January 21, 2021|newspaper=The Washington Post|archive-url=https://archive.today/20210122045649/https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2021/01/21/biden-executive-order-transgender-lgbtq/|archive-date=January 22, 2021|access-date=September 11, 2021|url-access=subscription}}{{Cite web |date=January 21, 2021 |title=Executive Order on Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation |url=https://bidenwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/20/executive-order-preventing-and-combating-discrimination-on-basis-of-gender-identity-or-sexual-orientation/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250118020421/https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/20/executive-order-preventing-and-combating-discrimination-on-basis-of-gender-identity-or-sexual-orientation/ |archive-date=January 18, 2025 |access-date=January 21, 2021 |website=The White House |url-status=live |language=en-US}}{{Cite web|date=January 25, 2021|title=Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation|url=https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/01/25/2021-01761/preventing-and-combating-discrimination-on-the-basis-of-gender-identity-or-sexual-orientation|access-date=January 23, 2021|website=Federal Register}} It was rescinded by Donald Trump within hours of his assuming office on January 20, 2025.{{Cite web |date=2025-01-20 |title=Initial Rescissions Of Harmful Executive Orders And Actions |url=https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/initial-rescissions-of-harmful-executive-orders-and-actions/ |access-date=2025-01-21 |website=The White House |language=en-US}}

Provisions

The order directs all federal agencies to review all policies which implement the non-discrimination protections on the basis of sex ordered by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (pursuant to the Supreme Court case Bostock v. Clayton County), Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, the Fair Housing Act and section 412 of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 and to extend these protections to the categories of sexual orientation and gender identity. Extending beyond the scope of President Barack Obama's Executive Order 13672 of 2014, which protected against discrimination on the basis of gender identity in the civilian federal workforce as well as sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination by federal contractors, as well as President Bill Clinton's Executive Order 13087, which protected against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in the civilian federal workforce.

Reactions

= Support =

The Human Rights Campaign hailed Biden's order as "most substantive, wide-ranging executive order concerning sexual orientation and gender identity ever issued by a United States president".{{cite web |last1=Acosta |first1=Lucas |title=President Biden Issues Most Substantive, Wide-Ranging LGBTQ Executive Order In U.S. History |url=https://www.hrc.org/press-releases/president-biden-issues-most-substantive-wide-ranging-lgbtq-executive-order-in-u-s-history |website=Human Rights Campaign - Press Releases |access-date=June 6, 2021 |date=January 20, 2021}}

= Opposition =

In opposition, Republican Senator Roger Marshall stated the executive order "shows no common sense and will bring about the destruction of women's sports".{{cite web |last1=Marshall |first1=Roger |title=Sen. Marshall Op-ed: Biden's gender discrimination executive order will destroy women's sports |url=https://www.marshall.senate.gov/press-releases/sen-marshall-op-ed-bidens-gender-discrimination-executive-order-will-destroy-womens-sports/ |website=Sen. Roger Marshall's Press Releases |access-date=September 11, 2021 |location=Washington, D.C. |date=March 1, 2021 |archive-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211005125442/https://www.marshall.senate.gov/press-releases/sen-marshall-op-ed-bidens-gender-discrimination-executive-order-will-destroy-womens-sports/ |url-status=dead }} Former Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley denounced Biden's order, calling it "an attack on women's rights".{{cite news |last1=Norman |first1=Greg |title=Nikki Haley calls Biden's executive order about transgender athletics an 'attack on women's rights' |url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/nikki-haley-criticizes-biden-executive-order-transgender-athletics |access-date=September 11, 2021 |publisher=Fox News |date=February 8, 2021}}{{unreliable source?|reason=Fox News is of dubious reliability for political topics|date=May 2022}}

Lauren Adams, legal director for the Women's Liberation Front said "both executive orders send a heartbreaking message to women and girls that their government does not view them as worthy of consideration and is not willing to recognize female people as a discrete class."{{Cite web|url=https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/womens-liberation-front-biden-executive-order-on-gender-identity-will-eviscerate-womens-rights-301212879.html|url-status=live|title=Women's Liberation Front: Biden Executive Order on "Gender Identity" Will Eviscerate Women's Rights|date=January 21, 2021|website=PR Newswire|archive-url=https://archive.today/20210910234842/https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/womens-liberation-front-biden-executive-order-on-gender-identity-will-eviscerate-womens-rights-301212879.html|archive-date=September 10, 2021|access-date=September 11, 2021}}

Following the departure of President Biden from office and the inauguration of Donald Trump as the 47th president of the United States, the Trump administration immediately rescinded the order, labeling its provisions as "unpopular, inflationary, illegal, and radical practices".