Then in March, she wore the mandated female uniform to school for the first time but was immediately sent home by the school Principal.
The principal, Brendan Wall told her she could either go back to wearing men’s uniform or find a another school.
In addition to telling Madigan she couldn’t wear the female uniform , school administrators also told her she would not be able to use the women’s bathroom and that her teachers would call her Liam, which is her birth name the name (despite the fact Madigan had her name legally changed to Lily by that point).This caused Madigan to fall into a “deep depression,” which also made her miss a lot of school.
Madigan then hired ended up hiring a lawyer and the firm took the case pro-bono because they believed it was “a pretty clear case of them [the school] discriminating against [her].”
In addition to sending the school a letter very clearly listing how Madigan should be treated, it was also “pointed out the laws the school was breaking – the Equality Act and the Human Rights Act – and it pointed out the school was breaking its own policy on diversity and equality.”
Almost immediately, Principal Wall apologized and Madigan was able to return to school in the fall wearing the women’s uniform.
She said her teachers now call her Lily and - for the most part - use the correct pronouns when speaking to her. “I was proud,” she told the site.
“I was happy in one sense but…I wish it didn’t have to happen.”Her attendance is up and she’s spending time at school prepping for a fashion degree so she can one day make her own clothes.
Source: The Huffington Post UK
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