The Oklahoma legislature [official website] approved a resolution [text, PDF] Thursday asking Congress to impeach President Barack Obama over his administration’s guidance [press release] on ensuring the protection and inclusion of transgender individuals in federal civil rights law. The legislators believe that the president has overstepped his constitutional authority and are requesting that congress initiate impeachment proceedings:

The members of the United States House of Representatives elected from this state are hereby requested to file articles of impeachment against the President of the United States, the Attorney General of the United States, the Secretary of Education and any other federal official liable to impeachment who has exceeded his or her constitutional authority with respect to the letter referenced in this resolution, based upon the grounds that the Constitution of the United States does not grant the executive branch of the federal government any authority whatsoever over the public education system, nor over the use of restrooms or other facilities thereof.

The legislature reiterated that they believe in safe and nondiscriminatory environments for all students, but they believe the measures [text, PDF] announced by the Justice Department are unconstitutional.

Rights of transgender individuals have become a hot button issue globally. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau introduced [JURIST report] legislation Tuesday that would ban transgender discrimination, including it within Canada’s hate crime laws. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), along with several other organizations, asked a federal court [JURIST report] on Monday to block the enforcement of a North Carolina law that they claim targets transgender people for discrimination. The Massachusetts Senate advanced [JURIST report] legislation last Thursday aimed at protecting transgender individuals from discrimination