As anti-LGBTQ+ attacks escalate nationwide, a group of Democratic congressional representatives revealed on Tuesday that they are working to enshrine protections for trans people in federal law.
Reps. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), David Cicilline (D-RI), Marie Newman (D-IL), Mark Takano (D-CA), and Ritchie Torres (D-NY) announced in a press release that they were introducing a Trans Bill of Rights in Congress. The proposed legislation would amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to explicitly include gender identity and sex characteristics (as opposed to merely “sex”) as protected characteristics. It would also amend federal education laws like Title IX to clarify that discrimination based on gender identity and sex characteristics is unlawul.
In 2020, the Supreme Court ruled in Bostock vs. Clayton County that the ban on workplace sex discrimination in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act includes discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity; the Trans Bill of Rights would formally codify this ruling into law as well.
In their press release, Reps. Jayapal and her colleagues noted the recent overturning Roe v. Wade, adding that the Supreme Court as currently constituted “seems poised and willing to take on other hard-earned constitutional rights.”
To that end, the measure would codify the right to abortion and contraception, expand access to trans healthcare, protect trans people from healthcare discrimination, and ban forced surgery on intersex infants. Lastly, the bill calls for investment in community and mental health services that work to prevent violence against trans people and provide services to survivors. It would also create a division within the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice that would specifically pertain to trans people.
“Our Trans Bill of Rights says clearly to the trans community across the country that we see you and we will stand with you to ensure you are protected and given the dignity and respect that every person should have,” Rep. Jayapal said in a statement. “With this resolution, we salute the resilience and courage of trans people across our country.”
While the Transgender Bill of Rights is a nice gesture, it rings slightly hollow considering that legislative, structural, and interpersonal attacks on trans people have been ongoing and widespread for years. It’s fairly similar to the Equality Act, which also promises to enshrine protections for LGBTQ+ people in federal law; while that bill has passed the House, it’s unclear when the Senate will vote on it, or if it can even pass the Senate if they do.
And while the press release claims the bill will “expand access” to gender-affirming medical care, it’s unclear how that access would be expanded, whether by mandating insurance coverage or increasing funding for publicly-funded providers of trans healthcare.
Still, Rodrigo Heng-Lehtinen, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality, said in the press release that he was “grateful that the members House of Representatives are sending this message to us — and especially to transgender youth — that they affirm our lives and value the contributions we make to our country.”
“We deserve to live as who we are without sacrificing our safety, access to health care or enduring violence and discrimination,” Heng-Lehtinen added.
All true, but unless Congress can actually bring the Trans Bill of Rights into existence in a timely matter it will remain just that: a message.
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