Lake County Gazette

State Representative Blaine Wilhour addressed Governor J.B. Pritzker with the question, "are you ok with this?" This inquiry followed a Deerfield mother's claim that school administrators compelled her daughter and others "to change in a locker room with a biological male against their will." Wilhour made this statement in a March 14 post on X.

"@GovPritzker are you ok with this," said Wilhour, IL State Representative, District 107. "This Deerfield Illinois mother claims that teachers and administrators in their public school, forced her daughter and others to change in a locker room with a biological male against their will. If this is true, any school personnel involved in this disgusting reprehensible behavior needs to be an immediately terminated and stripped of any pension or any other government benefits. This nonsense has to stop."

At a Deerfield District 109 School Board meeting, parent Nicole Georgas expressed concerns about an incident at Shepard Middle School. According to the Lake County Gazette, Georgas alleged that her daughter and other female students were forced to change in front of a male student in the locker room. She said that after refusing to change with a biological male present, school administrators reprimanded them and pressured them to comply. Her daughter faced repeated urging throughout the week, as officials justified the policy by allowing students to use locker rooms based on gender identity. In response, Georgas filed a civil rights complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice.

Wilhour's post on X | x.com/BlaineWilhour/status

Jesse Holzman of Chicago described herself as a "queer, non-binary, consensually non-monogamous, intersectional feminist, anti-racist, activist, educator, and scholar." According to the Lake County Gazette, she said that "ensuring access to (girls') bathrooms and changing rooms is not controversial."

Governor Pritzker has taken steps to protect and support transgender teens in Illinois. According to the Illinois Governor's newsroom, he signed an executive order in June 2019 mandating schools be "affirming and inclusive" of transgender and non-binary students. This directive instructed the State Board of Education to develop guidelines on issues such as names, pronouns, and dress codes. Additionally, in 2023, Pritzker signed a shield law protecting individuals in Illinois from foreign subpoenas or extraditions related to lawful reproductive or gender-affirming care.

Wilhour commented on the situation via X: "Illinois voters need to wake up and start making better decisions. This is exactly what Deerfield voted for when they sent their members to the general assembly. This is the Democrat party."

According to Ballotpedia, Wilhour is a Republican member of the Illinois House of Representatives representing the 110th district since 2023 after serving the 107th district from 2019 to 2023.