Democrats are pushing back against the Trump Administration’s continued attacks on the trans community with a Transgender Bill of Rights which calls on the federal government to codify trans rights. The bill — H. Res 1058 , which was introduced by Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) and Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), urges the Trump admin to codify the rights of “transgender and nonbinary people under the law and ensure their access to medical care, shelter, safety and economic safety.”
Jayapal, who is the parent of a transgender child, spoke about the bill during a press conference announcing the bill’s reintroduction. This is the pair’s second attempt to introduce a trans bill of rights, the first being in 2023. “We are laying out a comprehensive vision to provide protections for transgender and nonbinary people, a vision that ensures that every single person has a chance to thrive,” she said.
“A vision that says: you are us, you belong, and you are worthy of the same rights as everyone else. This bill supports amending the Civil Rights Act to ensure that trans people have the same rights and protections as all other Americans. It creates a level playing field where trans people no longer have to fight tooth and nail to get the same treatment as their cisgender friends.”
The bill calls on the government to protect the trans community by: ensuring trans and nonbinary people have equal access to public services and accommodations; recognizing the right of bodily autonomy and ethical healthcare and expanding access to gender-affirming care; and investing in community services to prevent violence against these populations; and requiring the Attorney General to designate a liaison for trans folks within the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice.
The resolution certifies that an estimated 1.6 million trans adults reside in the U.S. and should remain protected by the Supreme Court decision Bostock v. Clayton County, which ruled that “Federal protection against discrimination on the basis of sex includes protection from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.”
“The trans community, and any community that upsets the Trump-Vance administration’s narrow vision of who this country belongs to, has been targeted with fear, intimidation, and cruelty, but this resolution is an affirmative declaration that, even in the face of discrimination and violence, trans people will always joyfully exist and we deserve the same dignity and care as everyone else in this country,” Jayapal and Markey’s statement said.
The bill is supported by 80 co-sponsors including trans Congresswoman Sarah McBride.
