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New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Thursday that the city’s public school system should rethink its policy of allowing transgender students to use bathrooms and other facilities that align with their gender identity.
“We’re going so far away from common sense,” Adams said at an unrelated press conference. “My utmost importance is to ensure that when my children are in school, they’re in a safe environment. And I do not believe a safe environment is allowing boys and girls to use the same facility at the same time.”
He added: “I’m going to look at my authority and power to change that,” referring to the Education Department’s current rules. “We have become so politically correct that we are incorrect.”
Adams’ comments line up with an aggressive push by the Trump administration to roll back protections for transgender students but are at odds with city and state guidelines on restrooms. They drew swift rebuke from civil rights advocates and Zohran Mamdani, the frontrunner to become mayor next year. The state’s Education Department cast doubt on whether Adams has the authority to change the rules.
“Under the State Human Rights Law, transgender and gender expansive students are entitled to use the restroom or locker room that aligns with their gender identity,” state Education Department spokesperson JP O’Hare wrote in a statement. “The mayor is well aware of this fact, which was reiterated in joint guidance issued by the Department and Office of the Attorney General earlier this year.”
The mayor acknowledged he would need to seek advice from the city’s lawyers on the extent of his power.
Adams’ comments come as rumors have swirled about a possible Trump administration job opportunity to lure him out of the mayoral race so his opponent, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, could take on Mamdani. It also comes shortly after the Trump administration threatened to hold up federal grant funding to New York City for magnet schools because it believes the city’s policies on transgender students violate civil rights laws.
To receive that money, New York City public school officials must affirm “that it will not allow males to compete in female athletic programs or occupy intimate facilities designated for females,” wrote Craig Trainor the U.S. Department of Education’s Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights.
Mamdani blasted Adams’ comments on social media.
“Awful and dangerous to hear the Mayor echo the transphobic bigotry coming from the Trump administration,” Mamdani wrote on X. “It’s completely at odds with the values of our city and another reason why his single, disgraced term in office cannot end soon enough.”
A city Education Department spokesperson did not respond to a question about whether Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos agrees with the mayor’s position on bathroom access for transgender students.
Fights over transgender issues have popped up in New York City schools before. Some parents unsuccessfully tried to push the Education Department to reconsider its policy on transgender girls’ access to sports teams.
President Donald Trump has targeted states and school districts with more inclusive policies toward transgender students. His administration took the highly unusual step of placing five Virginia school districts on “high risk” status and withholding federal funds because of their policies allowing students to use bathrooms aligning with their gender identity. The department also found a Denver high school in violation of Title IX after it converted girls’ and boys’ restrooms to all-gender restrooms.
Federal courts have split on whether schools must allow transgender students to use bathrooms that align with the gender identity and whether denying such access amounts to sex discrimination. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court said that a transgender boy in South Carolina should be allowed to use the boys’ restroom while a challenge to that state’s bathroom bill plays out in court.
In response to the mayor’s comments, the New York Civil Liberties Union echoed that he could not alter the Education Department’s policy.
“Let’s be clear: the mayor has no authority to ban trans students from using bathrooms that match their gender identity,” NYCLU Executive Director Donna Lieberman wrote in a statement. “Such a move would be illegal under New York State and New York City laws and an affront to our shared values.”
National editor Erica Meltzer contributed.
Alex Zimmerman is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Alex atazimmerman@chalkbeat.org.
Amy Zimmer is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat New York. Contact Amy atazimmer@chalkbeat.org.
