President Donald Trump rescinded protections allowing transgender students to use bathrooms corresponding with their gender identity on Wednesday night, overruling Education Secretary Betsy DeVos.

Last May, under the order of former President Barack Obama’s administration, the U.S. Justice Department and Education Department issued a joint letter providing guidance that allowed transgender students to use facilities corresponding with their identity.

On Wednesday evening, Trump reversed the interpretation of Title IX, which previously protected transgender students, saying the directive failed to “contain extensive legal analysis” in a Dear Colleague Letter delivered by the Justice Department and Education Department.

The letter cited “significant litigation regarding school restrooms and locker rooms” following the previous policy’s counsel. The letter also stated that there must be “due regard for the primary role of the States and local school districts in establishing educational policy.”

Within the letter, Trump and his administration offered no new guidance to follow, leaving many transgender students amid gray area that now relies on state and local legislation.

In Iowa, gender identity is recognized as a protected class. This means that transgender people are free to use the facilities with which their identity aligns. If any discriminatory practice occurs, the people are protected under this policy.

Iowa State follows the policy of the state.

“When federal policy or statute or guidance or interpretation, in this case, is changed so that states and localities can come up with how they’re going to interpret it can be difficult depending on the state you’re in,” said Nicci Port, project director for the Office of Diversity and Inclusion in LGBTQA+ Affairs. “For us, we’re set up in a way that still protects gender identity according to state law. From there, Iowa State follows.”

For other states, policy varies. One of Iowa’s neighboring states, Missouri, does not recognize gender identity as a protected class, potentially posing a threat to not only transgender students but also transgender people as a whole.

“Because it was an interpretation of what Title IX provides, that interpretation can be made different depending on who is looking at it and interpreting it,” Port said.

The potential interpretation directly affects transgender students.

Mel Pope, senior in linguistics and transgender student, said the reversal of the previous policy was “several steps backwards.”

Pope said a lot of the progress that had been made on transgender issues is being quickly backpedaled by Trump’s administration.

“I think [it] kind of goes against the whole spirit of our democracy,” Pope said. “We elected Obama into his presidency because we trusted him to make these decisions. So it’s kind of a smack in the face when the next person gets into office and is like, ‘Nope, we’re just going to erase all of that.’”

Port encouraged people to remain active in order to have their voices heard.

“My hope is that people will speak out in the affirmative … before anybody decides, ‘oh, let’s take gender identity out of state code,'” Port said. “I hope the people of Iowa will speak up now, given at the federal level what has happened.”

Port encouraged people to do that by using technology and talking to their local and state representatives.

“On campus, there are places for us to build community or utilize the communities that already exist,” Port said. “It doesn’t have to be somebody doing it on their own.”

Among them, Port talked of the LGBTSS center — and its guide, Trans@ISU, — as well as other groups within the community. Port said there is a multitude of student organizations that are either LGBTQA+ or allies thereof.

Some maintain frustration on how this has happened.

While President Trump was running, he made himself out to be an ally of the LGBT+ community, Pope said.

In a tweet that goes back to June 14, 2016, now-President Trump declared, “Thank you to the LGBT community! I will fight for you.”

Now, his revocation of the previous administration’s interpretation of title IX and therefore guidance, seems to contradict his previous promises — “like all his other lies,” Pope said.

For transgender youth and young adults, Pope said the letter — and direction, or lack thereof — is a concern.

“[For] people who are just finally starting to come into their identity and get comfortable with being themselves, this kind of thing is terrifying,” Pope said. “It’s basically saying ‘you are invalid as a human and what you are doing is legally going to get you beat up and kicked out of the bathroom.'”

Pope expressed concern that the policy was pointless as people, after they transition to the gender with which they identify, don’t look like their biologically assigned sex.

“Honestly, I think it would create more discomfort to enforce such a law than it would to just let people pee in peace,” Pope said. “That’s all we want to do.”

For those individuals who don’t have the right to, as Pope says, pee in peace, Port encouraged that they are not alone.

“There’s a community that cares about this. And the community is bigger than you know,” Port said. “It’s not just individuals … it’s people who are affirming of [the LGBT community.] It’s not just you. You’re not the only person who cares about this, and there’s a whole host of people, like me, who are just as concerned about this.”