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Trans News Now 3/20/23

ceciliab | Mar 20, 2023

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The Ugly Duchess

As if to remind us that drag is old, an art expert has discovered that the Old Master painting known as “The Ugly Duchess” is actually a picture of a man in drag. This story comes from Them

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has signed into law the state’s extension of anti-discrimination legislation, which protects against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. There are now 22 states with such protections. The Advocate has this story.

It likely will not take long for another state to add protection against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. The state legislature of New Mexico has passed legislation amending its anti-discrimination legislation, and Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham is likely to sign the bill into law. This story comes from LGBTQ Nation.

The District Attorney in Philadelphia has announced the arrest of a suspect in the murder of Mar’Quis Jackson, a Black trans man and transgender activist. The murder took place last December. The Advocate has this story.

Houston police have announced an arrest in the murder of Marisela Castro, who was shot last July. The teen arrested does not appear to be the shooter, but was involved in the incident. This story comes from KTRK-TV.

Curtis Marsh, a drag performer, was stabbed to death in Oakland, California. Police this week have announced an arrest in the case. The Advocate has this story.

Florida became the eighth state to enact a ban on transgender minors receiving gender-affirming care. The ban was approved by the medical boards which Governor Ron DeSantis stacked with political appointees. This story comes from Them.

The Georgia state legislature has approved a ban on most gender-affirming care for minors. The bill goes to Governor Brian Kemp, who is likely to sign it. WABE public media has this story.

West Virginia’s state legislature also approved a bill to ban transgender minors from receiving gender-affirming care. Governor Jim Justice has not commented on whether he will sign the bill, according to The AP.

Rachel Levine

Assistant Secretary of Health Rachel Levine recently told an audience that gender-affirming care for transgender children is supported at the “highest levels” of the Biden administration. The New York Post has this story.

President Biden called the anti-transgender legislation in Florida “close to sinful” in an interview with Kal Penn on The Daily Show. This story comes from The Hill.

Although the federal government is siding with every major medical association in backing gender-affirming care for minors, some states are not only banning gender-affirming care for minors, but extending that ban to include at least some adults. ABC News has a list of states which want to prevent at least some adults from receiving gender-affirming care. The list includes states where legislation forbids using Medicaid funds to cover gender-affirming care.

A Democratic member of the Georgia state legislature pleaded with transgender people to not kill themselves, as the legislature passes a bill banning gender-affirming care, despite her vote against the measure. This story comes from The Advocate.

Iowa was one of two states where the legislature passed a bathroom bill this week. This bill is aimed at school restrooms. This story comes from The Des Moines Register.

The state legislature of Arkansas also passed a bill forbidding transgender people from the locker rooms and restroom in schools. Fox News has the AP’s story.

Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed into law this week a bill which allows anyone in the state to sue any doctor who provides gender-affirming care. The doctor can have his or her license suspended and can be made to pay damages. The bill allows for the suit to be filed up to fifteen years after the patient turned 18. This story comes from LGBTQ Nation.

Yasmin Finney

Yasmin Finney says that she receives a lot of abuse from anti-transgender individuals. PinkNews has this story.

The Supreme Court has agreed to take up a case involving transgender people. West Virginia v. B.P.J. holds that government discrimination against transgender people is inherently suspect under the constitution. If it is inherently suspect, then the constitution could easily be used as a shield by transgender people. Any legislation which attempted to infringe on the rights of transgender people would get heightened scrutiny in that case. Vox has this story. Given the current justices on the Supreme Court, the decision is not likely to go in our favor.

A reporter for Mother Jones has discovered the various groups behind a coordinated effort to introduce anti-transgender legislation at state legislatures. She talked to NPR about what she found.

Texas Republicans have introduced a new bill which, if passed, would allow private citizens to sue drag performers who allow minors to see their act. Yes, it is certainly an overreaction, but these are Texas Republicans. This story comes from Them.

A new bill in the California State Assembly would require teachers, counselors, or public school employees to tell parents if their child has changed genders at school. What ever happened to the Republican idea of a small government that leaves individuals room to make decisions for themselves? KTLA-TV has this story.

The U.S. military in Europe has frozen the program which provides transgender counseling for children of service members, though for now they have agreed to keep providing counseling to those who were already enrolled in the program. The military is trying to get local doctors to provide transgender care, but typically, those countries provide health care services to their citizens and their permanent residents, not to family of U.S. military personnel, except in an emergency. This story comes from Stars And Stripes.

The Department of Veterans Affairs has a new mission statement. It has replaced gendered language, to better serve transgender and non-binary veterans. LGBTQ Nation has this story.

Fae Johnstone got death threats.

We mentioned last week that a new ad campaign by Hershey’s featured a transgender woman as one of five spokeswomen. She says that she has been “traumatized” by the transphobic hate which some expressed to her for her appearance in the ad. This story comes from PinkNews.

Reaction like that can cause a company to choose not to support transgender rights, or to keep that support secret. However, Kum & Go, a chain of gas stations with convenience stores, tweeted their support for trans rights this week. This story comes from Them.

We recently reported on a Christian school in Vermont which forfeited a game rather than play against a team with a transgender female on its roster. This week, WCAX-TV reports that the school has been barred from state-run activities and athletics, as a result of the forfeited game.

Jamie Lee Curtis won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress this week. She has a transgender daughter whom she supports, and she said that she dedicates winning the award to her daughter Ruby. The Advocate Channel has this story.

Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan won the Academy Award for Best Direction, as the directors of Everything, Everywhere, All At Once. In their acceptance speech, they said that “Drag is a threat to nobody.” This story comes from Them.

A story in PinkNews says that making a film with positive transgender representation is so difficult that some are giving up on the traditional Hollywood system.

Lil Nas X issued an apology for a transgender joke he made. Some think that the apology is too little, according to PinkNews.

Brianna Ghey

The funeral for Brianna Ghey was held this week. Mourners were asked to wear pink instead of black. This story comes from PinkNews.

Thousands of Canadians have signed a petition to make their country a refuge for transgender Americans who are being discriminated against by their state and local governments. The CBC wonders if this could work.

A transgender Russian refugee committed suicide in a Dutch camp. This story comes from PinkNews.

A Saudi transgender woman who was forced by her government to detransition has committed suicide. PinkNews reports this story.

A group of cisgender lesbian TERFs has been caught using pictures of transgender and non-binary people in its promotional material. This story comes from PinkNews.

A Christian school in New Zealand shut down because they felt that they could not do their job without the now-banned practice of conversion therapy. LGBTQ Nation has this story.

A transgender Texan wrote a piece in The Texas Observer about what it is like to be transgender in Texas at this time.

Leigh Finke

Leigh Finke became the first transgender legislator appointed to the Minnesota House of Representatives after winning 81% of the vote in her district. She was named one of USA TODAY’s Women of the Year, a recognition of women who have made a significant impact in their communities and across the country. Learn more from SC Times.
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Student at Wellesley College in Massachusetts have voted to accept transgender males and non-binary students in their all-female school. CNN has this story.

A non-binary high school student from North Carolina, Linden James, won $90,000 for a project on traumatic brain injury. This story comes from The Advocate.

Trans News Now is assembled by Cecilia Barzyk with additional content and editing by Angela Gardner. Care to make a comment on this post? Login here and use the comment area below.