Transgender rights & well-being

Trans pride flag

Spokane passes LGBTQ+ rights ordinance to protect trans folks from the federal government

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Council members voted 5-2 to implement the ordinance, which updates the Washington State city’s human rights code to define gender-affirming care and ensure equal protections for LGBTQ+ people. The policy “prohibits the city from collecting or disseminating information about anyone’s sex assigned at birth, unless it’s related to a criminal investigation.” The ordinance also requires city-provided healthcare to cover gender-affirming care. Council members celebrated the city living up to its motto: “In Spokane, we all belong.”

Thai flag

Thailand makes hormone therapy free for trans people

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Just days after marriage equality became the law in Thailand, the country’s national health ministry added hormone replacement therapy (HRT) to the free health services available to citizens. The Public Health Ministry allocated 145 million baht to the National Health Security Office for HRT. The targeted funds will cover the HRT needs of 200,000 transgender Thais. Until now, self-funding for HRT has prevented some trans individuals from gaining access to proper care, leading to health risks if they resorted to purchasing and using hormones without medical supervision.

Karla Sofia Gascón at 2024 Cannes Film Festival

Karla Sofía Gascón just became the first out trans actor to score an Oscar nomination

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The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has made history by announcing that Spanish actress Karla Sofía Gascón has been nominated for an Oscar for her lead performance in Emilia Pérez. Gascón, who starred in the Spanish language musical as a Mexican drug lord who begins a new life after coming out as trans, is the first openly transgender performer ever to receive an acting nomination in the Academy’s 95-year history.

New York sign

New York passes Equal Rights Amendent passes

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New Yorkers have passed Amendment 1, branded the Equal Rights Amendment. The New York Constitution already forbids discrimination based on race, creed, or religion. Amendment 1 adds language that would prohibit denial of civil rights based on national origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes or reproductive healthcare and autonomy. The amendment effectively guarantees a right to abortion and adds protections for trans New Yorkers.

Sarah McBride

Sarah McBride makes history as first trans member of U.S. Congress

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Her recent election win makes McBride the first out transgender person to serve in Congress. She beat her Republican opponent, John Whalen III, who ran on an anti-immigration, anti-choice platform. At only 34, McBride has already made an impressive name for herself, with her seat in Congress adding yet another “first” to the list. After working for the Human Rights Campaign and interning in the Obama-Biden White House, the 2020 elections in her home state of Delaware made her the first trans person elected to a state senate.

Chase Strangio to be the first openly trans lawyer to present to the Supreme Court

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Strangio is the co-director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s LGBTQ & HIV Project, having played an instrumental role in guiding the organization through numerous trans-related legal battles. He was additionally part of the team that won a legal battle against a ban on trans care with the case Brandt v. Rutledge, representing four families with trans youth. He will make his debut on December 4 in U.S. v. Skrmetti, a case that will decide transgender rights in the country for years to come.

Person happily holding a trans pride flag

European court rules member states must recognize trans people’s names and genders

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The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled that member states must recognize legal documents from other countries that reflect a person’s changed name and gender identity, regardless of the member state’s own laws on changing one’s name and identity. Marie-Hélène Ludwig, senior strategic litigator with the LGBTQ+ rights organization ILGA-Europe, said in a statement, “This judgement will have an immensely positive impact, increasing legal protection for all trans people in the E.U…”

Kim Coco Iwamoto

Kim Coco Iwamoto to become Hawaii’s first trans lawmaker

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Iwamoto is known for her progressive stance, having been recognized by former President Barack Obama for her work. She’s also been supported by groups mirroring U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders’ (I-VT) politics. She supports the Green New Deal, wants to increase funding of public education in the state, promotes mass reform of the criminal justice system, and aims to invest in affordable housing.

Hands making hear shape over transgender flag in background

Mexico City passes law requiring harsher sentences for anti-trans murderers

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Mexico City, Mexico has passed a local law banning murders against transgender women, a practice referred to in the country as transfemicidio (transfemicide). Murderers convicted under the law would face between 35 to 70 years in prison. Nearly 600 trans people in Mexico have been murdered between 2008 and 2021. At least 10 trans women have been murdered this year in Mexico City alone.

San Francisco and Golden Gate Bridge at sunset

San Francisco votes unanimously to become a sanctuary city for trans & nonbinary people

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San Francisco, California has become the largest city in the United States to declare itself a sanctuary city for transgender, gender nonconforming, nonbinary, and Two Spirit people to safely receive gender-affirming healthcare. The city’s Board of Supervisors has voted unanimously to bar city officials from assisting any out-of-state investigations into individuals who obtain, provide, or help others access gender-affirming care.

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