Rights groups in midterms drive after officials reportedly planning to define gender as only male or female and determined at birth

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

LGBT and civil rights activists urged Americans to vote in the midterm elections “like lives depend on it” on Monday, after it was reported that the Trump administration is planning to define transgender people out of existence, by officially defining gender as only male or female and determined at birth.

Authoritarians like Trump target trans people for a reason | Mischa Haider Read more

According to the New York Times, the move would reverse Obama-era policies that officially recognized transgender individuals.

“Everyone needs to vote on 6 November like lives depend on it – because they do,” said Diego Sanchez of PFLAG National, a group that supports LGBT rights, at a press conference in Washington.

Asked about the proposal on Monday, Donald Trump said his administration is “looking at it”.

“We have a lot of different concepts right now,” he told reporters outside of the White House as he departed for Texas. “They have a lot of different things happening with respect to transgender right now. You know that as well as I do and we’re looking at it very seriously.”

Conservatives, especially evangelical Christians, were outraged by the Obama administration’s decision to loosen the definition of gender identity and have lobbied the administration to return to a more rigid definition of sex.

Hillary Clinton tweeted her support, writing: “This is an attack on the humanity of transgender people and it cannot stand. Let’s send a clear message that we won’t sit back and allow this type of discrimination in two weeks at the ballot box.”

The press conference in Washington featured trans activists and civil rights organizers and was hosted by the Human Rights Campaign. A countdown clock on the building reminded passersby there were less than 15 days to go until election day.

Activists held signs that said “#WeWillNotBeErased” – a hashtag that spread on social media after the publication of the Times report – and marched to the White House to rally against the proposal.

According to a memo obtained by the Times, the proposal by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) would define gender as male or female, as determined by the genitals a person was born with. It would specify that sex is “immutable”, thereby effectively removing any legal recognition for transgender individuals.

“I am livid but clear-headed,” said Mara Keisling, the executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality. “I feel very threatened but I am absolutely resolute.”

“We are scared as trans people,” she continued. “To put this in the simplest of terms, this is the federal government saying, ‘We will not enforce federal civil rights laws.’”

The proposed definition would be inserted into title IX, the federal civil rights law that prohibits gender discrimination in education. Such a move would make it impossible to use the law to combat discrimination against transgender people.

Sign up for the new US morning briefing

Across the US, questions about whether anti-discrimination law protects transgender people have fueled fights over access to bathrooms and locker rooms. The Obama administration generally took the position that discrimination against transgender people should be considered a form of prohibited sex discrimination.

The Trump administration has reversed that view. Under the reported proposal, the federal government would rely on the sex listed on a person’s birth certificate as originally issued, regardless of whether the person has undergone gender reassignment surgery or had their birth certificate amended.

Masen Davis, chief executive of Freedom for All Americans, said this was a moment that would “test the resilience” of the LGBT community. But he said it also clarified the strength of their support.

'Rapid-onset gender dysphoria' is a poisonous lie used to discredit trans people | Liz Duck-Chong Read more

Organizers of the press conference denounced the proposed plan as part of a “consistent, multi-pronged campaign” by the White House to undermine the civil rights of LGBT people. They also urged Congress to pass legislation that would extend explicit non-discrimination protections to LGBT people.

The Trump administration has also sought to bar transgender people from serving in the military, countering another Obama-era policy.

About 1.4 million Americans identify as transgender. After the Times report was published, many denounced the idea with photos of themselves on social media and the hashtag #WontBeErased.

The Trump administration memo cited by the Times said that it was working according to “a biological basis that is clear, grounded in science, objective and administrable”.