The Department of State Health Services in Texas removed the option to correct one’s sex on their birth certificate, a board in Missouri discusses labeling LGBTQ books, and trans inmates in Idaho will start to receive gender-affirming care.
Trans People Blocked From Correcting Birth Certificate
A trans advocacy organization revealed that the Department of State Health Services (DSHS) removed the option to correct one’s sex on their birth certificate, according to the publication Them.
The verbiage in the application used for birth certificate corrections has changed from “correct child’s sex after medical/surgical change” to “correct child’s sex due to incompletion or inaccuracy.” This means a change can only be made due to a medical or processing error –– not when one undergoes gender-affirming surgery.
Andrea Segovia, a senior policy and field organizer for the Transgender Education Network of Texas, said the DSHS removed the option with no announcement. Trans Texans have had the option to correct their legal gender marker since 2009.
Board Discusses Labeling LGBTQ Books
Photo via christiancountylibrary.org.
As new members were appointed to the Christian County Library Board of Trustees, there are now talks of labeling books with LGBTQ material, according to the Springfield News-Leader.
The members, who were voted to lead the board in an August meeting, ordered executive director Renee Brumett to develop options for stickers to label books that contained LGBTQ themes. Members of the public who attended the meeting said the labels were necessary, citing the Bible and a need to protect children.
Others said the decision would be stigmatizing, and raised concerns about the new board’s power to make changes so quickly and easily.
Incarcerated Trans People to Receive Affirming Care
Photo via Pexels.
A federal judge ruled that incarcerated trans people are temporarily exempt from complying with House Bill 668, which prohibits state funds and facilities from providing gender-affirming care, as a lawsuit is sorted out.
Judge David Nye said there is clear evidence that gender dysphoria is a serious medical need, according to the Idaho Capital Sun.
“The parties’ disagreement stems from whether (House Bill 668’s) prohibition on appearance-changing medical interventions requires prison officials to act in a way that is deliberately indifferent to that serious medical need,” Nye wrote in his decision.
House Bill 668 still remains in effect for those with gender dysphoria who are not incarcerated.
Katie Heredia, who is listed as the lead plaintiff in the case, said the law didn’t view incarcerated trans people as human, and that action needed to be taken immediately.
“I’m not [a plaintiff in the lawsuit] because I want recognition,” Heredia said. “I’m doing it because it has to be done. We are just normal people who happen to be trans. We have medical conditions and deserve access to medical treatment.”
