美国有线新闻 CNN 特朗普取消奥巴马跨性别厕所令 留给各州自己决定（在线收听）

There's been a change in U.S. government rules regarding gender and bathroom use in public schools. We first reported on this last May.

That's when the Obama administration gave a controversial instruction to schools regarding students who are transgender, people who identify as a gender that's different than their biological sex at birth.

A recent university estimates suggest around half of 1 percent of Americans are transgender, though the exact percentage isn't known.

The Obama administration recommended that U.S. public schools allowed transgender students to use the bathrooms or locker rooms that correspond with their gender identity. The government said this would protect transgender students from discrimination and it threatened schools with the loss of federal funding if they didn't follow the rules.

But more than 20 states sued the government, saying it was trying to illegally rewrite existing law and forced radical changes on schools. The directive is currently tied up in court.

The guidelines were not a law passed by Congress, so they were subject to being reversed by any succeeding presidential administration. And this week, they were.

The Trump administration says policies on this issue should be in the hands of Congress, state legislators or local governments.

SEAN SPICER, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: I made this clear and the president made it clear throughout the campaign that he is a firm believer in state's rights, and in certain issues like this are not best deal with at the federal level.

AZUZ: House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi wrote in a statement, quote, "This is not a state issue. This is an issue of equality for all and that transgender students have the same right to a safe environment at school and in their community as everyone else."

Supporters of the new guidelines called them a victory for parents, students and privacy, and the Trump administration says it remains committed to protecting all students from discrimination and bullying.