UPDATE: Current Affairs: What the Biden Administration is Doing for Trans Individuals
Update as of September 22, 2022:
Six months after President Biden’s historic action on Transgender Awareness Day outlining policies for the governing and treatment of transgender individuals, America once again is caught in a political standstill with government officials (Biden included) fighting tooth and nail to push their own agendas. Despite Biden’s initial promises and positive attitude towards being able to protect trans rights significantly, this year has proved extremely difficult for transgender individuals. Still at issue here are the three original principles of transgender healthcare, access to government services, and visibility.
In May, Biden’s Assistant Health Secretary Rachel Levine, the first openly transgender federal official confirmed by the Senate, commented on the state of young transgender Americans by stating they are “being driven to the depth of despair.” As transgender youth suicide rates rose, Levine’s comment illustrates how anti-LGBTQ+ friendly policies being put in place in red states affect the mental stability of individuals. Supposedly in response to this situation, President Biden signed an Executive Order during Pride Month detailing his plan to safeguard healthcare for trans individuals, including establishing and promoting programs specifically designed to reduce youth suicide rates through prevention. These programs are set to be overseen by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, but will likely receive pushback in Conservative states, counties, and schools.
Furthermore, transgender individuals face more barriers in accessing vital government services related to healthcare. In the past year, over 300 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced in state legislatures. A number of these bills target transgender youth and their families as Conservatives continue to dehumanize the larger LGBTQ+ community and privatize social services. In this way, many states have attempted to ban gender-affirming healthcare services and limit in-school support for transgender individuals. The Sexual Health Alliance vehemently believes that This feels like a good time to give a quick SHA reminder: healthcare and sexual education are human rights. In response, Biden has charged the Department of Health and Human Services with providing outlines for comprehensive healthcare services to transgender individuals. Related to this, the Department of Health and Human Services will also be banning federally funded programs from offering “conversion therapy” services while also creating educational programs to warn about the dangers of these types of medically-dangerous programs.
Finally, as visibility remains a key area of need for the transgender community, Biden has committed to expanding federal data collection on gender identities. I imagine we will be able to see this play out during the next round of census data collection as well as on a more local level in schools and workplaces. The gender marker option of “X” continues to be offered on federal identification, and the response from trans and enby individuals has been overwhelmingly positive (check out this post from Sensuality Doula Ev’Yan Whitney!). While Conservative politicians will try to block this progress at every step, Biden’s re-commitment to these issues offers hope to LGBTQ+ individuals and allies alike. Though these actions can still be criticized as performative, especially since the signing of his new Executive Order was during Pride Month just as the original press release was on Transgender Awareness Day, as Sydney said, small steps are still steps.
By Emily Carriere