Every week at All Saints Church we put our faith in to action. This week we are supporting an ACLU petition urging President Biden to issue an executive order that will make accurate and accessible IDs for all.
Trans and nonbinary people need access to IDs that accurately reflect who they are, our government doesn’t make that easy. Only 11 percent of trans people in America have an accurate name and gender marker on all IDs and records. That’s because of burdensome requirements that prevent them from getting updated identification, often putting their safety at risk.
The Biden-Harris administration has the power to fix this in its first 100 days by issuing an executive order directing all federal agencies to remove medical documentation requirements for updating gender markers and add a gender-neutral “X” designation to federal IDs and records for anyone for which an “M” or an “F” is not suitable.
The documentation requirements to change a gender marker present extreme obstacles and many healthcare providers have spoken out against it. Medical letters are costly, complicated, an invasion of privacy, and entirely unnecessary, and they prevent many trans and nonbinary people from getting an updated ID to move through the world.
The fact is, refusing to provide accurate IDs puts trans men, trans women, intersex people, and nonbinary people in potential danger. Showing an ID with a name or gender marker that doesn’t match your gender presentation or identity risks verbal harassment, denial of services, and violence – the last especially impacting Middle Eastern, Native American, and Black trans and nonbinary people.
Nobody should be forced to present documents that tell lies about who they are. Nonbinary people want to be recognized for who they are. And after years of being erased through cruel administrative actions, it’s time our federal government did better.
