Trump administration says Minnesota violates Title IX by allowing trans athletes in girls sports

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — President Donald Trump's administration said Tuesday that the state of Minnesota and its governing body for high school sports are violating a key federal law against sex discrimination by allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls sports.

The ruling came from the civil rights offices at the U.S. Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services. The agencies said the Minnesota Department of Education and the Minnesota State High School League are violating Title IX “by allowing males to compete in female sports and occupy female intimate facilities.”

The agencies said they found that the league has allowed transgender athletes to compete in girls Alpine and Nordic skiing, girls lacrosse team, girls track and field, girls volleyball and girls fastpitch softball.

“The Trump Administration will not allow Minnesota or any other state to sacrifice the safety, fair treatment, and dignity of its female students to appease the false idols of radical gender ideology,” Craig Trainor, the federal Education Department's acting assistant secretary for civil rights, said in a statement.

Trump's administration initiated its investigation after he issued an executive order in February giving the federal government wide latitude to pull funding from entities that “deprive women and girls of fair athletic opportunities” by allowing transgender athletes to participate.

The Minnesota State High School League said in response back then that it would follow state law — not the executive order — and continue to allow transgender athletes to compete in prep athletics. Associations in some other states signaled they also might defy the president’s order, but others took a wait-and-see approach.

The federal agencies gave the state and league 10 days to voluntarily accept a list of conditions to reverse their policies or risk imminent enforcement action.

The state Department of Education said in a statement it is “reviewing the letter and remains committed to ensuring every child has the opportunity to thrive in a safe and supportive school community.”

The league did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Trump administration has launched over two dozen investigations of transgender policies in schools and colleges, including access to sports, locker rooms and bathrooms, according The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit news organization. The U.S. Education Department said in August that Denver schools violated Title IX by creating all-gender bathrooms.

President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House before signing an executive order regarding childhood cancer and the use of AI, Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House before signing an executive order regarding childhood cancer and the use of AI, Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela is releasing a “significant number” of citizens and foreigners from its prisons in a decision that the head of the country’s legislature described Thursday as a gesture to “seek peace” less than a week after former President Nicolás Maduro was captured by U.S. forces to face federal drug-trafficking charges in New York.

Jorge Rodríguez, brother of acting President Delcy Rodríguez and head of the National Assembly, did not specify who they would be releasing or how many people would be released. But he said the release of prisoners “is happening right now.”

The Spanish government announced Thursday the release of five Spanish citizens in Caracas. While the embassy is coordinating their return to Spain, officials have not yet specified a departure date.

The Penal Forum, a human rights organization in Venezuela, said that as of Dec. 29, 2025, there were 863 people detained in Venezuela “for political reasons.” In a post on X, director of the forum, Alfredo Romero, said the liberations were “good news” in a country that's been wracked by political turmoil in recent days.

“We will be verifying each release,” Romero wrote. “We already know of some people on their way to freedom, including foreigners.”

The release of opposition figures and critics has been a longtime demand by Venezuela's opposition and the United States government.

Despite mass detentions following the tumultuous 2024 election, Venezuela's government denies that there are “political prisoners” and accuse those detained of plotting to destabilize Maduro’s government.

“Consider this a gesture by the Bolivarian government, which is broadly intended to seek peace,” Rodríguez said in an announcement publicized over TV.

Ronal Rodríguez, a researcher at the Venezuelan Observatory at the University of Rosario in Bogotá, said the government periodically releases prisoners at politically strategic moments.

“The regime uses them (prisoners) like a bargaining chip,” he said, adding that he and other observers will be watching not just how many people the government releases, but also whether high-profile individuals are included or if they're being released under a condition of house arrest.

Little movement was immediately seen outside one of Venezuela's most notable prisons, where a number of the detainees are held.

On Wednesday, the Trump administration sought to assert its control over Venezuelan oil, seizing a pair of sanctioned tankers transporting petroleum and announcing plans to relax some sanctions so the U.S. can oversee the sale of Venezuela’s petroleum worldwide.

Both moves reflect the administration’s determination to make good on its effort to control the next steps in Venezuela through its vast oil resources after U.S. President Donald Trump pledged after the capture of Maduro that the U.S. will “run” the country.

Janetsky reported from Mexico City.

Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

Police guard El Helicoide, the headquarters of Venezuela's intelligence service and detention center, in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, after National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez said the government would release Venezuelan and foreign prisoners. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

El Helicoide, top, the headquarters of Venezuela's intelligence service and detention center, stands in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, after National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez said the government would release a significant number of Venezuelan and foreign prisoners. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)

FILE - Activists and relatives of prisoners release balloons calling for the freedom of political prisoners, in Caracas, Venezuela, April 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos, File)

Commuters ride a bus past a mural calling for the release of former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who was detained by U.S. forces, in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)