Transgender rights have made strides in recent years, from the landmark case of Bostock v. Clayton County to being allowed to self-select your gender on U.S. passports without medical documentation.
This year, a record number of transgender people ran for office, and New Hampshire’s James Roesener became the first trans man ever elected to any U.S. state legislature and Zooey Zephyr became the first openly trans person elected to serve in Montana’s state’s legislature. Across the country, numerous anti-trans bills died in committee, including a Missouri bill which would have prohibited changing sex on birth certificates and a Tennessee bill which would have allowed educators to misgender trans youth in schools. In many states, bills which would prohibit discrimination against transgender people, like Ohio’s Enact Fairness Act and North Carolina’s Equality for All bill, are being heard in committees. And the rise of acceptance of transgender people has be seen on social media via the popularity and support of popular influencers like Dylan Mulvaney.
Changes and victories like these, bring hope to the transgender community that we are on the road to acceptance. “I think because of the shift of what’s happening, how everything has become so normal, and people are being more open, and within the umbrella of queerness so many different things are happening, I think as we get more comfortable and we progress as a society, it’s just going to be better. So, people don’t have to hide who they are. So, that gives me hope.” – Nonbinary person, mid-20s
Transgender Awareness Week provides an opportunity and platform to center the conversation on transgender people. So, this Transgender Awareness Week we are using our voices to highlight the power and resilience of transgender community. By highlighting the positive change in the community, we establish more positive representation to combat anti-trans prejudice.
The 2022 U.S Trans Survey is taking place this year to update the stories and data about transgender people in the U.S and help ensure that the experiences of trans people across the country are heard.
