feature image photo by Mark Kerrison / Contributor via Getty Images
One thing you’ll notice in this week’s Trans News Tracker is that people are fighting back against anti-trans policies through various forms of legal resistance. I’m always a little wary about the efficacy of these, but given that the fervor for anti-trans action has seemingly fell away (like these kinds of moral panics normally do), I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that some of the architects of the moral panic around trans rights appear to understand the power of this uproar is losing steam as the days and weeks go on. Regardless, those of us who are deeply committed to the liberation of all people must remain diligent in our work to dismantle the systems that make this ongoing oppression possible.
Hospitals Should Be Committing To Trans Youth Healthcare Not Limiting It
We have been reporting on the ways children’s hospitals and other medical centers that provide treatment to young people have responded to the Supreme Court’s decision in U.S. vs. Skrmetti and the Trump administration’s executive orders regarding trans healthcare. For the most part, the reactions have been to drastically limit gender-affirming care for young trans people without much of a contingency plan for those patients who are currently being seen at those clinics and hospitals.
In what is truly an inspiring and refreshing change of pace, the Boston Children’s Hospital has taken the opposite stance by absolutely refusing to stop or limit gender-affirming care for trans youth. Even as calls from far-right losers like Chaya Raichik, who runs Libs of TikTok, and Riley Gaines come out to “defund and investigate” the Boston Children’s Hospital, the hospital administration is standing so firmly in their (morally correct) decision to keep providing care to trans youth that they posted a lengthy statement about it publicly on their website.
Earlier this month, their website for the hospital’s Gender Multispeciality Service (GeMS) program featured a message responding to the shut down of gender-affirming care options for trans youth across the country: “Boston Children’s Hospital has always been and always will be committed to providing the best care for ALL of our patients, regardless of their gender identity. The belief that all children deserve the opportunity to live, grow and thrive with love and support, is foundational to who we are and what we do. […] We believe in a gender-affirmative model of care, which supports transgender and gender diverse youth in the gender in which they identify. This is a standard of care grounded in scientific evidence, demonstrating its benefits to the health and well-being of transgender and gender diverse youth.”
As of right now, aside from some chronically online takes from the far-right, the federal government hasn’t responded to Boston Children’s Hospital’s decision to continue providing the necessary care to trans youth. And as far as I can tell from the reports, there isn’t much they can do to get in the way without yet another gigantic lawsuit on their hands.
Some Good Trans News For Once
Volleyball player sues California university that revoked her scholarship for being trans. This story is especially wild because when Emma Morquecho originally applied for the scholarship she received in 2022, she disclosed that she was trans and the college — along with the sports governing bodies in charge of the college’s volleyball participation — had no issue with it. But when they tried to back out of the scholarship, Morquecho teamed up with Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund to sue the pants off them. I hope she wins.
U.S. trans runner sues over ‘bigoted’ removal from college track team. Trans athletes are really out here making sure these colleges and sports governing bodies — like the NCAA, for example — don’t get away with their anti-trans bullshit. In this case, long-distance runner Evie Parts is suing both Swarthmore College and the NCAA for pushing her off the track team. Once again, I hope she takes them for all they’ve got.
Four more Virginia school districts defy Trump, reject trans bathroom ban demand. Like Maine and Montana before it, Virginia continues to hold it down for trans youth in their public school districts. Following Loudoun County Public Schools’ vote earlier this month to uphold protections for trans youth in their schools, four more school districts — Alexandria City Public Schools, Arlington Public Schools, Fairfax County Public Schools, and Prince William County Public Schools — vowed to do the exact same thing.
Trans people in Georgia prisons are being forced to detransition. Now they’re suing. If you’ve ever been to or worked in prisons before, you know what an incredible feat of organizing it would take to put together a class action lawsuit against the state. And that’s exactly what trans inmates in both the female- and male-designated correctional facilities in Georgia have done in order to attempt to force the state to provide them with the necessary medical care they need to continue their transitions. I truly hope they not only win but get restitution for all the hell they’ve gone through, as well.
First U.S. homeless shelter for transgender people opens in New York City. The headline kind of says it all here. This is HUGE, and it will certainly improve the lives of hundreds of trans and gender non-conforming people in the city. I can only hope the trend spreads to other major metropolitan areas in the U.S.
Judge rules in favor of LGBTQ+ health researchers after HHS revoked funding for “radical” programs. On behalf of 16 researchers and the group, GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBTQ+ Equality, Lambda Legal filed a lawsuit against Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert Kennedy, Jr.’s National Institutes of Health (NIH) for revoking funding from researchers working on initiatives that impact LGBTQ+ people and for stalling the review of new applications for funding. As of earlier this month, Judge Lydia Griggsby of the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland issued a preliminary injunction in favor of the researchers ruling that the actions of the HHS Secretary and the NIH violated the Fifth Amendment.
From across the pond:
UK’s first transgender judge seeks rehearing of Supreme Court case on biological sex. I was wondering if and when the UK Supreme Court’s ruling on the definition of biological sex was going to be challenged and taken back through the courts for an appeal. Now, retired judge Victoria McCloud is taking her evidence in defiance of the UK Supreme Court’s decision and bypassing the governmental structures of the UK altogether by bringing the case straight to the European court of human rights. I’m sorry to say this again but I hope she gets their asses.
Trans News I Wish I Didn’t Have to Report
Trans woman’s body found behind Detroit laundromat; man charged with murder, hate crime. This is absolutely devastating. Although police have a good idea of what happened and who murdered her, more information about the woman who was attacked, Christina Hayes, is still being uncovered. It is yet another stark reminder of what happens when the lives of trans people are continually and consistently devalued in the public eye. We will likely have more to report about this in the coming days.
Texas GOP uses emergency flood relief to push trans bathroom ban. S. Baum over at Erin in the Morning truly doing the Lord’s work uncovering this absolutely ludicrous situation and this story. You really have to read it to believe it, but basically, Governor Greg Abbott used a special session in the state house meant to create policy to address the flooding of Kerr County in July in order to pass this bathroom ban.
Last Bits
We published some great stories on trans life — and most importantly, trans JOY — the last couple of weeks. Motti wrote about T-Boy Wrestling and his experience in the ring, and Emma took us for a trip through the queer and trans archives to show how DIY magazines and small trans printing presses helped build community for trans people in the 1960s and 1970s.
Lady Gaga wore a trans flag sash on the Mayhem Ball tour. Not surprising that our girl continues to show up for the entire LGBTQ+ community, but worth including here nonetheless.
Iconic fashion designer sells feet videos on OnlyFans to fundraise for trans shelter. Fashion designer and “bisexual icon” Rick Owens announced on his Instagram that he will be selling pictures and videos of his feet on OnlyFans in order to raise money for a trans shelter in Versailles, France called La Maison D’Allanah. Unconventional, sure, but if it works, it works. I hope Rick can convince all these deviants (complimentary) to buy every picture and video he’s selling.
Mariah Carey has officially joined the “Protect the Dolls” Movement. At her UK Pride performance this month, Mariah Carey was seen sporting a jacket with the words “Protect the Dolls” in diamond-embellished font on the back of it. As a lifelong Mariah Carey fan and obsessive, I was excited to see this even if I know logically this makes very little material difference in our lives as trans and gender nonconforming people. The fact that she wasn’t voted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as an inductee this year gets even more aggravating as the year goes on.
This is Trans News Tracker, a biweekly Autostraddle roundup and analysis of the biggest trans news stories. To support this vital work we do, consider becoming a member.
