Today is Trans Day of Action. In New York City, people are gathering in Washington Square Park this afternoon. They’ll march through the city streets, calling out for justice for the trans community.
This day of action is organized annually by the . It’s a day to honor transgender women of color who catalyzed the movement for LGBT rights — like Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera, who sparked the Stonewall Rebellion but have largely been erased from movement history.
It’s a day to uplift transgender and gender non-conforming people of color who continue that legacy, leading movements from coast to coast to uproot violence and discrimination. They are tackling police profiling, racism, homelessness, and poverty — and the many other issues transgender people of color face every day.
Trans Day of Action is also a space to heal. Health practitioners are offering free services in the park like reiki, giving priority to trans people of color. This is especially important as our communities continue to grieve for the victims of the mass shooting in Orlando — a painful reminder of the violence and discrimination that and Black LGBT people disproportionately face. And as we process — a tragedy that rarely makes media headlines.
It’s a good day to reflect on the hard work people across the country are keeping up to fight anti-trans bills from South Dakota to North Carolina. And to take stock of what we still need to do.
In solidarity with Trans Day of Action, I asked a few of the ACLU’s transgender clients and advocates of color why they are on the frontlines for transgender justice — and why Trans Day of Action is important to them. Here’s what they told me:
Meagan Taylor, ACLU Client
Being a Black transgender woman, you have to deal with things like sexism, racism, and harassment on a daily basis. Transgender people struggle on a daily basis, and we’re striving to make a change. My message for other Black transgender women is to stay strong. Change is coming really soon. Stay positive and continue to do what you have to do for yourself.
Joaquin Carcaño, ACLU Client
By standing up for transgender justice, we honor the work of those who came before us — trans women of color like Marsha P Johnson and Sylvia Rivera — and we continue their legacy of liberation. The entire LGBTQ community has benefited in endless ways from their energy and work and sacrifice. We have come so far, but liberation is a continuous fight. And the best way I believe I can show my appreciation for the life I am able to live as an out Latino transgender man is to contribute to the work for collective transgender justice. Our lives continue to be challenged, and we need to create not just communities of safety but communities of empowerment.
Trans Day of Action is important to me because we need the platform of dedicated days like this to leverage our voices and highlight those in the fight, especially because our oppressed communities are underrepresented and often spoken for during the conversations that directly involve or attack our livelihood. Our stories matter. Our stories are valuable. As members of the transgender community, we are also part of other marginalized groups — we are also people of color; we are the working class; we are immigrants and women — we face violence on many levels, against our many layered identities and we are connected by this fight. This fight — for our livelihood, for existence, for fulfillment, for ownership of our bodies and identity — is exhausting and can be very isolating. We need each other. We need reminders that we are a large community and family. Our solidarity is a powerful community force, and this day is an opportunity to showcase our resiliency and strength.
Lara Americo, ACLU Action Advocate
Trans* and queer people of color are marginalized every day, and until we have equality everywhere, we have to take action.
I live in North Carolina. I’ve been leading rallies all over the state to call for the repeal of HB 2 and to stand up for LGBT people’s right to live free of discrimination and violence. As a transgender woman, I know personally what’s at stake here. I should be able to use the bathroom, ride the train, go out to lunch, and everything else that any other woman is able to do without harassment and discrimination.
Since I’ve been organizing in North Carolina, I have been moved beyond belief by the outpouring of support I have seen from people across the country. That's why Trans Day of Action is important to me.
*The word trans* is an inclusive, non-binary umbrella term to describe the many trans and gender-non-conforming expressions and identities.
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Press ReleaseDec 2024
LGBTQ Rights
President Biden Must Veto Defense Bill Attacking Military Families with Transgender YouthPresident Biden Must Veto Defense Bill Attacking Military Families with Transgender Youth
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate today passed a version of the National Defense Authorization Act that would ban coverage for gender-affirming care for transgender youth whose parents are active-duty military personnel. The American Civil Liberties Union is opposing final passage of the defense bill over the inclusion of this health care ban and calling on President Joe Biden to veto the bill. Section 708 of the NDAA would prohibit insurance coverage for “medical interventions for the treatment of gender dysphoria” such as hormone therapy and puberty-suppressant medications, which Speaker Mike Johnson says would “permanently ban transgender medical treatment for minors.” The same treatments would be covered by TRICARE for any medical purpose other than treating gender dysphoria, the clinical diagnosis for the psychological distress experienced by transgender people related to their gender identity. “By passing this bill, the House and Senate are forcing thousands of active-duty service members to choose between their careers in the military and the future of their transgender children,” said Mike Zamore, national director of policy & government affairs at the ACLU. “This unconscionable and unjustifiable attack on those families stands in direct contrast to President Joe Biden’s legacy of defending the civil rights of transgender Americans — including when few in his own party showed the courage to do so. President Biden should cement his legacy by vetoing this bill and sending it back to Congress to pass without Speaker Johnson’s last minute health care ban for servicemembers’ kids.” If signed by President Biden, this health care ban would be the first new anti-LGBTQ provision enacted by Congress and signed into law by the president since the enactment of the military’s since-repealed “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy for LGBTQ servicemembers and the since-repealed federal law barring recognition of same-sex marriages known as the Defense of Marriage Act. It is unknown how many transgender youth are currently enrolled in TRICARE or how many of those enrolled are currently receiving coverage for gender-affirming care. In one 2022 analysis, 2,500 minor patients sought care for gender dysphoria through TRICARE Prime insurance at military or civilian treatment facilities in 2017, and 900 received puberty suppressants or gender-affirming hormones. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a landmark case brought by the ACLU, the ACLU of Tennessee, Lambda Legal, and Akin Gump on behalf of three families and a medical provider challenging a Tennessee ban on gender-affirming hormonal therapies for transgender youth on the grounds the ban violates the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution. -
Press ReleaseDec 2024
LGBTQ Rights
Montana Court Blocks State From Refusing to Correct Sex Markers on Transgender People's Birth Certificates and Driver's LicensesMontana Court Blocks State From Refusing to Correct Sex Markers on Transgender People's Birth Certificates and Driver's Licenses
HELENA, Mont. – A Montana court has granted a preliminary injunction preventing the state of Montana from enforcing policies that bar transgender people from obtaining accurate sex designations on their birth certificates and driver’s licenses. After a prior restriction on amendments of birth certificates was struck down by the courts, in early 2024 the state of Montana enacted a new rule that categorically bars transgender Montanans from correcting the sex designation on their birth certificates. Around the same time, the Montana Department of Justice adopted a policy similarly restricting amendment of driver’s licenses. The plaintiffs challenged these policies in state district court, arguing that they violate various constitutional provisions, including the right to equal protection of the law. In a recent Montana Supreme Court decision, two justices concluded that discrimination on the basis of transgender status – as the state is engaging in here – is a form of sex discrimination that violates the Montana Constitution’s equal protection clause. The plaintiffs, two transgender women, are represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Montana, and Nixon Peabody LLP. Plaintiff Jessica Kalarchik, a veteran who served in the United States Army for 31 years, said: “After finally being able to live my life openly as the woman I know myself to be, I am frustrated that my birth state, Montana, wants me to carry around a birth certificate that incorrectly lists my sex as male. I live my life openly as a woman, I am treated as a woman in my daily life, and there is no reason I should be forced to carry a birth certificate that incorrectly identifies me as male. Fortunately, the court agrees that this ridiculous policy should not be in effect.” “Once again the State of Montana chose to adopt a draconian policy that is clearly intended to marginalize transgender Montanans, only for that discriminatory action to be blocked by the courts,” said Akilah Deernose, executive director for the ACLU of Montana. “Here in Montana we treasure our right to privacy and to live our lives free from governmental intrusion. The State of Montana clearly has not learned any lessons from the past few years, where courts have repeatedly struck down unconstitutional laws targeting transgender Montanans.” “Forcing anyone to carry documents that contradict their identity unjustly violates their rights to privacy, equal treatment, and not being compelled to convey a government message about their sex that they disagree with,” said Malita Picasso, staff attorney for the ACLU’s LGBTQ & HIV Project. “Such a policy marks transgender people for further mistreatment and discrimination, essentially requiring them to carry papers that out them as transgender any time they need to provide identity documents. Fortunately, the court has refused to allow the state of Montana to subvert the freedom of transgender Montanans to control their own identity as this case goes forward.” In granting the plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction, the court held, “[i]f the challenged state actions discriminate against transgender individuals on the basis of their transgender status, they also necessarily discriminate the basis of sex.” The state has the option of appealing the district court’s ruling to the Montana Supreme Court, but the underlying case will proceed in district court. A trial has not yet been scheduled. -
FloridaDec 2024
LGBTQ Rights
Keohane v. DixonKeohane v. Dixon
On September 30, 2024, the Florida Department of Corrections rescinded its policy regarding treatment of gender dysphoria, which allowed for hormone therapy when deemed medically necessary, as well as access to clothing and grooming standards that accord with one’s gender identity. Under this new policy, grooming and clothing accommodations have been stripped away, and hormone therapy is not permitted unless an exception is deemed constitutionally required. The ACLU brought a class action challenging the policy. -
IdahoDec 2024
LGBTQ Rights
Robinson v. LabradorRobinson v. Labrador
Two incarcerated transgender women have sued the state of Idaho alleging that HB 688, a 2024 law barring state funding for gender-affirming medical care for transgender people, denies them access to the health care their doctors have prescribed for them and is a violation of their Eighth Amendment right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment. They represent a class of all incarcerated folks within the state of Idaho who face the loss of hormone therapy due to HB 668.