Transgender Rights and Issues
On both the state and federal level, trans people lack the legal protections needed to lead healthy, safe, and dignified lives. This Article addresses the current state of legal protections for transgender people. Part II describes workplace discrimination protections based on gender identity at the state and federal level. Part III covers access to gender-affirming healthcare, including challenges with insurance and discrimination when accessing care such as hormone replacement therapy (HRT) under the Affordable Care Act and its state-level companions. Part IV provides an overview of violence against transgender individuals by various actors and discusses legislative efforts to address disparities across intersectional lines. Part V summarizes challenges facing, and protections for, transgender people in accessing public accommodations and housing. Part VI emphasizes the importance of obtaining identity documents that reflect one’s gender identity, and it discusses the varied difficulty with which trans people can obtain or change those documents on the federal and state levels.