Transgender teenager who ran for 'Prom King' sues school district for discrimination over bathroom policy

A transgender high school student filed a lawsuit against a Wisconsin school district for alleged discrimination over bathroom use policy.

Ashton Whitaker, 16-year-old incoming senior, claimed Kenosha school district authorities had been making his life "miserable" because they would not allow him to use the boys' bathroom at Tremper High School.

He also said security guards were ordered to conduct a daily surveillance of his bathroom use.

Whitaker claimed school officials proposed that transgender students wear bright green wristbands to identify them and make it easier to see if they are following the school's bathroom policy.

"The school administrators have made my life miserable every school day since this spring, when they told me I could no longer use the boys' restrooms, which I'd been using with the support of my classmates for months," Whitaker said in a statement.

He also complained that school authorities continue to address him by his birth name and use female pronouns in referring to him.

Whitaker, who was born female, now identifies as a boy. In April, he gained public support when he decided to run for prom king.

The school initially told him he was not allowed to run for prom king and encouraged him to run for prom queen instead. However, through an online petition signed by thousands of people and the support of his peers at school, Whitaker was able to reverse the school's decision.

Kenosha Unified school district said it is reviewing Whitaker's complaint, adding that some of the student's allegations were "patently false."

"The District does not have a practice or policy requiring any student to wear a wristband for monitoring any purpose or for any reason whatsoever. The District has worked diligently with transgendered students and their families to address their unique needs and accommodations, including the family named in the suit," the district said in a statement to Fox 6.