McBride will run for Delaware’s 1st Senate District, where incumbent Harris McDowell, a fellow Democrat, announced July 1 that he would retire in 2020. The district covers Bellefonte, Claymont and parts of Wilmington, the state’s largest and most populous city.
“I’ve spent my life fighting for people to have dignity, peace of mind, and a fair shot at staying afloat and getting ahead,” McBride said in a statement shared with NBC News. “Sen. McDowell’s retirement at the end of this term is a well-deserved cap on a remarkable career of public service, and now our neighbors need someone who will continue to fight for them.”
McBride, currently a spokesperson for LGBTQ advocacy group Human Rights Campaign, first made national headlines in 2012 while still a college student. A day after stepping down as American University’s student body president, McBride came out as trans in the school’s student-run newspaper. During her time in college, McBride also interned in the Obama White House, becoming “the first openly transgender woman to work in the White House in any capacity,” according to her campaign announcement.
Should McBride be elected next year, she would be America’s first openly transgender state senator. According to the Victory Institute, there are currently 715 openly LGBTQ elected officials nationwide.
Three high-school students in Connecticut have filed a federal discrimination complaint challenging the state’s policy of letting trans students compete on sports teams according to their gender identity.
The complaint was filed on behalf of the three girls on Monday (June 17) by the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), a conservative Christian organisation in the US that has also filed over 40 cases against Planned Parenthood.
Their complaint to the US Department of Education alleges that Connecticut’s policy violates Title IX, the federal civil-rights law that is meant to ensure students have equal access to opportunities regardless of their sex.
The complaint, which refers to trans girls as “biological males,” says that trans athletes should not be allowed to compete in the category corresponding to their gender identity because it’s unfair to cisgender girls.Free Antivirus Software Reviews 2019. Compare Free Antivirus Software Providers Side-By-Side.SEE MORE
Eliza Byard, executive director of GLSEN, a group dedicated to rights for LGBT+ students, said to CNN, “This is a serious lawsuit brought about by a parent and the Alliance Defending Freedom as part of a broader effort to bar trans students from equal access in sports.”
“Trans girls are girls, and they should have access to all parts of school,” Byard said.
All three girls making the complaint are teen track athletes. Two are unnamed and the third is Selina Soule.
“Girls deserve to compete on a level playing field. Forcing female athletes to compete against boys is grossly unfair and destroys their athletic opportunities,” said Christiana Holcomb, a lawyer with ADF, in an online statement.
“Title IX was designed to eliminate discrimination against women in education and athletics, and women fought long and hard to earn the equal athletic opportunities that Title IX provides. Allowing boys to compete in girls’ sports reverses nearly 50 years of advances for women under this law. We shouldn’t force these young women to be spectators in their own sports.”
ADF have other anti-trans lawsuits
The ADF’s mission statement is “defending religious liberty, the sanctity of life, and marriage and family.”
Its website says, “The abortion industry has been profiting from the deaths of infants for over 40 years,” and adds that the “good news” is that “a surging pro-life movement has forced the closure of 75 percent of surgical abortion businesses in America.”
Another lawsuit related to trans issues is detailed on ADF’s website in a post called“Two recent victims of the transgender movement.”
The lawsuit was filed by the ADF in November 2018 on behalf of a male professor who was given a written warning by a university for refusing to use she/her pronouns for a student who had informed him she was a trans woman.
“This isn’t just about a pronoun; this is about endorsing an ideology,” said Tyson Langhofer, a lawyer for ADF.
Complaint calls for ban on transgender students in girls sports
The high schoolers complaint in Connecticut calls for an investigation of Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC), the non-profit organisation responsible for high-school athletics regulations.
It also demands that trans girls track records are removed and for them to be denied access to women’s sports in Connecticut.
CIAC says that its policy follows a state-wide anti-discrimination law that requires students to be treated in school as the gender they identify with.
“The CIAC reviewed our transgender policy with the Office of Civil Rights in Boston earlier this school year to ensure compliance with Title IX,” said Glenn Lungarini, executive director of CIAC.
“In addition to reviewing the policy with our legal counsel, the CIAC also discussed our current policy with Connecticut’s Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities to ensure compliance with Connecticut legislation protecting students (and others) in their gender expression and identity.”
The American Medical Association has warned that violence against transgender people is rising in the US.
The medical body issued a warning about an “epidemic of violence against the transgender community, especially the amplified physical dangers faced by transgender people of colour.”
American Medical Association board member Dr. S. Bobby Mukkamala said: “According to available tracking, fatal anti-transgender violence in the U.S. is on the rise and most victims were black transgender women.
“The number of victims could be even higher due to under reporting, and better data collection by law enforcement is needed to create strategies that will prevent anti-transgender violence.”[
Transgender people take part in a candle light vigil on the Transgender Day of Remembrance in Bangalore on November 20, 2015. (MANJUNATH KIRAN/AFP/Getty)
The body warns that “the physical risks faced by transgender individuals can have long and short-term negative impacts on the physical and mental health of these individuals, survivors, their communities, and the nation as a whole.”
A resolution was backed at the AMA’s annual House of Delegates meeting earlier in June raising concerns about a spate of anti-trans violence.
Trans women of colour are most likely to face violence
The resolution notes: “Since 2013, at least 128 transgender women, transgender men, and non-binary people (people whose gender is not male or female) have been killed across 32 states and 87 cities in the US.
“In 2017, there were 29 homicides of transgender people in the US reported in the media, the highest number ever recorded, in addition to many more that were not publicly known
“In 2018, advocates tracked at least 226 deaths of transgender people in the US due to fatal violence, 82 percent of whom were transgender women of colour and 73 percent of whom were Black transgender women.”
The body has backed calls for a central law enforcement database to collect data on reported hate crimes, and has also called for stronger law enforcement policies regarding interactions with transgender individuals in order to prevent bias and mistreatment.
Police in Dallas this month arrested a suspected serial killer who has been charged with the murder of black transgender woman Muhlaysia Booker and two other victims.
Kendrell Lavar Lyles is also a person of interest in the death of another black trans woman, Chynal Lindsey.
As President Donald Trump’s ban on most transgender military servicemembers continues to face legal challenges, 71% of Americans support allowing openly transgender men and women to serve in the military.U.S. Support for Transgender People Serving in the MilitaryDo you favor or oppose allowing openly transgender men and women to serve in the military?
Favor
Oppose
No opinion
%
%
%
National adults
71
26
2
Republicans
43
53
4
Independents
78
20
2
Democrats
88
11
1
Military veterans
56
43
1
Nonveterans
73
25
2
Men
64
34
2
Women
79
20
2
18-29
84
15
2
30-49
73
25
2
50-64
66
32
2
65+
66
33
1
May 15-30, 2019
GALLUP
These data are from a May 15-30 Gallup poll, which was conducted prior to a recent U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision that allows the ban to stand for the time being, but calls for a review of the policy that could still jeopardize its legal standing. On Tuesday, the House of Representatives voted to block funding to implement the policy — though the measure’s chances of passing in the GOP-controlled Senate, much like the recently passed Equality Act, are unlikely.
Majorities of Americans across nearly all key demographic groups, except for Republicans, support allowing transgender men and women to serve in the U.S. military. Republicans (43%) are far less likely than Democrats (88%) and independents (78%) to support allowing trans servicemembers.
A small majority of adults with military experience (56%) say that transgender people should be allowed to serve, though nonveterans are more likely to say this (73%).
Women are more likely than men to support transgender military service, and support is higher among younger adults than older Americans.
These findings about Americans’ views of transgender people serving in the military are similar to Gallup’s polling in the years leading up to the 2010 repeal of the military’s Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy, which barred gays and lesbians from serving openly. At the time, Gallup found that most Americans supported allowing openly gay servicemembers.
Americans Remain Split on Transgender Bathroom Policies
Americans’ views on gender-related policies governing public restrooms have shown little movement in recent years. Gallup first polled on the issue in 2016, when Barack Obama’s Department of Education directed public schools to allow transgender students to use restrooms and locker rooms that correspond with their gender identity, rather than their birth gender. This policy has since been rescinded under the Trump administration.
The issue has roiled local and state politics, but public opinion has changed little, with 51% of Americans saying that transgender people should have to use the restroom corresponding with their birth gender and 44% saying that transgender people should use the restroom that corresponds with their gender identity.Americans’ Views on Restroom Policies for Transgender PeopleIn terms of policies governing public restrooms, do you think these policies should — [ROTATED: require transgender individuals to use the restroom that corresponds with their birth gender (or should these policies) allow transgender individuals to use the restroom that corresponds with their gender identity]?
Birth gender
Gender identity
No opinion
%
%
%
May 15-30, 2019
51
44
5
May 3-7, 2017
48
45
7
May 4-8, 2016
50
40
10
GALLUP
The percentage of Americans who now have no opinion (5%) is half of what it was in 2016, likely reflecting that they have become more familiar with the issue in recent years.
Having restroom assignment based on birth gender is preferred by most by Republicans (78%) and men (61%).
By contrast, Democrats (66%), adults aged 18 to 29 (61%) and women (53%) are the groups most likely to say students should be able to choose bathrooms based on their gender identity.Views on Restroom Policies for Transgender People, by SubgroupIn terms of policies governing public restrooms, do you think these policies should — [ROTATED: require transgender individuals to use the restroom that corresponds with their birth gender (or should these policies) allow transgender individuals to use the restroom that corresponds with their gender identity]?
Birth gender
Gender identity
%
%
National adults
51
44
Republicans
78
18
Independents
50
46
Democrats
27
66
Men
61
35
Women
42
53
18-29
37
61
30-49
58
38
50-64
52
42
65+
52
41
May 15-30, 2019
GALLUP
Two in Three Americans Prefer Separate Restrooms for Men and Women
Many public places have responded to the transgender restroom policy debate by providing unisex restrooms that can be used by anyone. But according to the new poll, Americans prefer separate bathrooms for men and women (68%) in large public places as opposed to unisex ones (30%).Americans’ Views on Separate vs. Unisex RestroomsMore generally, in large public places such as malls, stadiums and airports, do you think there should be — [ROTATED: separate bathrooms for men and women, (or should there be) unisex bathrooms that can be used by all genders]?
Separate bathrooms
Unisex bathrooms
No opinion
%
%
%
May 15-30, 2019
68
30
2
May 15-30, 2019
GALLUP
Majorities of all key subgroups favor separate restrooms for men and women, with Republicans (81%) most in favor, but also a little over half of 18- to 29-year-olds (52%) and Democrats (56%).
Bottom Line
With gay marriage now a political moot point and Don’t Ask Don’t Tell having been repealed for several years, LGBT activists have largely shifted their focus to trans issues as the Trump administration has moved to undo the trans-friendly policies of the Obama era.
Similar to their views on openly gay servicemembers in the aughts, most Americans support allowing transgender people to serve in the U.S. military. This contrasts with Trump’s ban on transgender servicemembers, which he announced via a series of tweets in July 2017. Though the ban has since been subject to legal and political scrutiny, it remains in place.
Gender policies around public restrooms are much more mixed, with Americans leaning slightly toward policies based on one’s birth gender rather than their gender identity. While public opinion has moved little in recent years, the actual federal policies for schools on this issue have undergone an about-face from the previous presidency. Views on the policies are strongest by political party identification, so it’s very likely that policy changes will only take place upon shifts in party control at state and federal levels — as was the case in North Carolina, which became the focal point of this issue years ago.
In the early hours of 6 June, North Carolina authorities found the body of Chanel Scurlock, a black transgender woman, in Lumberton.
They found Scurlock’s body in a field near Old Town Road in the city. She was shot to death and her car was missing.
Robeson County Sheriff Burnis Wilkins told local news outlet The Robesonianinvestigators have ‘great leads’ into her death.
‘Robeson County sheriff’s detectives are currently working diligently to bring closure to a grieving family,’ Wilkins added.
‘This cowardly act has to be addressed and a person or persons will be held accountable and brought to justice.’
The Robesonian and other outlets, however, are misgendering and deadnaming Scurlock in their reporting.
According to the Raleigh TV news station WRAL, someone posted a photo of Scurlock in feminine clothing, but then deleted it. Scurlock was allegedly going to meet the person Tuesday (5 June).
Her mother reportedly said Scurlock had recently made a connection with the man who posted the photo. She also said it was a ‘red flag’ that Scurlock was going to meet him.
‘RIP baby’
Friends on Facebook paid tribute to Scurlock and identified her as a transgender woman.
‘Blurred lines. Who ever thought this would be the last time we talked,’ one friend, Kandice Stigger, wrote.
‘RIP baby. You lives [sic] your life as you wanted. I’m proud of you for being unapologetically correct about your feelings and expectations of YOU. Rosha McNeill call me. Brenda Scurlock I’m here. I love you all.’
A violence that needs to end
Scurlock is the fifth known black transgender woman murdered in the US in the last month. She is also the ninth trans person killed in the country in 2019 so far. All of them have been black transgender women.
The body of a black transgender woman pulled from White Rock Lake in northeast Dallas on Saturday evening “showed obvious signs of homicidal violence,” the Dallas police chief said.
Jason Haslett aka Chynal Lindsey.Dallas Police Dept.
“We are concerned,” Dallas Police Chief U. Reneé Hall told reporters at a news conference Monday. “We are actively and aggressively investigating this case and we have reached out to our federal partners to assist us in these efforts.”
Police released photos of Lindsey, who was also known as Jason Haslett, “as a female and as her born gender” at her family’s request, Hall said. Normally, the department would not do so, she said.
Lindsey is at least the sixth black transgender woman who has been killed nationwide in 2019, according to the Human Rights Campaignadvocacy group.
Less than two weeks ago, Dallas police announced they were investigating if the shooting deaths of two transgender women and the stabbing of a third, who survived, are connected. In those incidents, two of the victims had been in a similar part of Dallas, and all three either got into a car with someone or allowed someone into their car before the attacks.
Muhlaysia Bookervia Facebook
Muhlaysia Booker, 23, was found shot to death May 18. Police have not identified a suspect in her slaying.
Booker’s death came little more than a month after she survived a brutal beating in Dallasfollowing a minor traffic accident that was captured on cellphone video and went viral. Edward Thomas, 29, was charged with assault in the April beating. He is not being held in jail, and police have said there is no evidence connecting him with Booker’s killing.
On May 21, police said that Booker’s slaying was one of those that bore similarities to recent attacks on transgender women in Dallas.
“These cases, although not directly related at this time, do have some similarities the public needs to be aware of,” Maj. Vincent Weddington told reporters at a news conference that day.
Weddington said police were working with federal law enforcement officers to determine if any of the attacks should be considered hate crimes.
In October 2018, a transgender woman was found shot to death in a vehicle parked in southeast Dallas, police said.
In April, a woman survived after she was repeatedly stabbed in south Dallas. She provided information about her attacker, but police have not released a detailed description of the man.
Trans people have been beheaded, gunned down and stoned to death, according to a new report.
It highlights the 369 trans, non-binary and gender-variant people, at least, who were murdered in the 12 months from 1 October 2017 to 30 September 2018.
28 of the trans murder victims were reported to be teenagers, with some as young as 16.
There were five beheadings. Nine people were stoned to death.The majority of the people killed were trans women of color, often gunned down or beaten to death.
Brazil still has the most reported trans murders in the world
The Trans Day of Remembrance update has seen an increase of 43 cases compared to last year’s update, and 73 cases compared to 2016.
Brazil (167 murders) and Mexico (71), once again, lead the list of the most reported killings of trans women and men.
The United States has seen 28 trans people killed, an increase from last year’s 25.
Other killings have been reported in Pakistan, Colombia, France, the UK, and elsewhere around the world.
But these horrifying numbers are just the tip of the iceberg.
Beheaded, gunned down, and shot to death
Media organizations – including normally reputable names – are often guilty of misgendering the victims when they are trans, making it even more difficult to get a real sense of the problem.
And there are multiple countries, many in Africa, where we have little knowledge of the violence happening against trans people. The highest numbers have been found in countries with strong trans movements that carry out professional monitoring.
‘We cannot estimate a number, but indeed what we can register is just a small fraction,’ Lukas Berredo, from Transrespect vs Transphobia Worldwide, told Gay Star News.
The majority of the people killed, 62%, were sex workers.
Christa Leigh Steele-Knudslein, trans and intersex, was a LGBTI rights advocate living in Massachusetts. She was also a founder of the Miss Trans America beauty pageant.
She was found dead in her home on 5 January. Her husband confessed to striking his wife with a hammer before stabbing her in the back. Christa was 42.
Azul ‘Blue’ Montoro, a 26-year-old sex worker, was killed in Cordoba, Argentina.
She was stabbed 18 times in a friend’s apartment. She only died when the final stab, the 19th, came at her throat.
Fernando Lino da Silva, a 21-year-old, was a trans man living in Maceió, Brazil. He was just watching TV when he was shot to death.
Naomi Hersi, 36, was stabbed to death in a London hotel in March. Her murderer was recently jailed for 20 years.
Naomi Hersi
Hajira, in Pakistan, was tortured to death before she was beheaded. She had been dead for several days before being discovered.
A government contractor refused to bury the body. It is unknown why. It may because she was beheaded or she was a transgender woman.
Vanesa Campos was a sex worker in Paris. Immigrated from Peru two years before, she was shot by a mob as she tried to prevent one of her clients from being robbed.
Her killing sparked protests about the treatment of sex workers in France.
S. A. Sánchez López was murdered on 19 November last year. She was 41, deaf, and living in Nicaragua. She was beaten to death for ‘no reason’.
Devudamma Surya Naryana, 47, was electrocuted to death in her home in India.
And Nikolly Silva, a 16-year-old, was stoned to death at dawn in Cabo Frio, Brazil.
Why we remember
These are just a few names and faces of a list that can only begin to imagine the scope of transphobic murders that happen worldwide every year.
Trans people run the risk of losing their lives just for being who they are.
Berredo added: ‘Trans Day of Remembrance is a date in which we remember and honour the trans and gender-diverse people whose lives has been taken away from us.
‘It is a mourning day, and it is also a day to be together with our communities, to keep existing and resisting.’
Zeta Phi Beta, a historically black sorority founded at Howard University, says transgender women are not eligible for membership.
A “diversity statement” adopted by the Zeta Phi Beta International Executive Board on Jan. 12 states “an individual must be a cisgender woman” to join the organization. The statement at the same time says the sorority “values all people, regardless of race, age, gender, gender expression, ability, disability, creed, religion, or walk of life.”
A source earlier this month sent the Washington Blade a copy of the statement. Zeta Phi Beta has not responded to multiple requests for comment.
Five women founded the sorority in 1920 to “directly affect positive change, chart a course of action for the 1920s and beyond, raise consciousness of their people, encourage the highest standards of scholastic achievement, and foster a greater sense of unity among its members,” according the sorority’s website.
The organization says it prioritizes social work and has “given untotaled hours of voluntary service to educate the public, assist youth, provide scholarships, support organized charities, and promote legislation for social and civic change.”
It has more than 100,000 members and more than 800 chapters in the U.S., Africa, Europe, Asia and the Caribbean.
Zeta Phi Beta has drawn media attention before, but largely for hazing issues rather than gender discrimination.
Discrimination based on gender identity in Greek life is common.
Few sororities have policies that are explicitly inclusive of trans women. And nationally trans women of color face higher levels of discrimination than other LGBT people.
A new report published today (7 May) exposes the ‘widespread failure’ of police forces across the US to protect and serve trans people.
Policies are failing to modernize in what researchers describe as ‘systemic neglect.’
The National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) worked with dozens of local and state groups to analyze how 25 of the nation’s largest police departments treat trans people. For the most part, the results are in the red.W
Moreover, around 58% of trans people in the US have encountered law enforcement in the past year, and of those, they experienced harassment, abuse, or other mistreatment.View image on Twitter
NEW: Violence facing trans people intensifies when police depts fail to protect & serve us. #WhoProtectsUs#FailingToProtect@TransEquality audited the 25 largest US police depts to learn: they can improve & how they’re falling short.
‘As we make groundbreaking advancements towards transgender equality, many members of our communities continue to be affected by disproportionate contact with, and often by bias and abuse within, policing and the criminal justice system,’ the report’s introduction read.
NCTE scrutinize 25 police departments – from Atlanta to Boston, Chicago to San Francisco – across 17 criteria.
Several police departments across the US failed to protect trans citizens in an array of areas | Picture: NCTE
They range from bathroom access to respectful communication as well as search procedures to how trans-inclusive training is.
Furthermore, over a two-year period, NCTE researchers evaluated publicly available polices and practises.
What did they find?
Among the researchers’ key findings:
No department explicitly requires regular training on trans interaction policies for all members across rank.
None of the departments required officers respectfully record the name currently being used by the individual.
No department explicitly provides for trans individuals to be transported along with individuals of the same gender identity.
Out of the sixteen departments with holding facilities, only four adequately address access to hormone medications.
Out of the sixteen departments with holding facilities, 10 failed to provide specific guidance on housing placement for transgender individuals.
A majority of departments (16 of 25) fail to provide search procedures for transgender individuals.
However, alongside the report, the NCTE also published a seperate model policy document. In it, they propose an array of policy changes to help guide reforms.
But even if police implemented all proposed policy, the report acknowledged ‘it would not be enough to ensure that all transgender people are treated fairer by police.’
They added: ‘It is clear that the issues facing transgender people can’t be separated from broader issues of police reform and oversight.’
An all-male, historically black college in Atlanta, Georgia, will start admitting some transgender students in 2020.
Morehouse College announced that it will begin to accept transgender men, but not trans women.
“In a rapidly changing world that includes a better understanding of gender identity, we’re proud to expand our admissions policy to consider trans men who want to be part of an institution that has produced some of the greatest leaders in social justice, politics, business, and the arts for more than 150 years,” Terrance Dixon, Morehouse’s vice president for enrollment management, said in a statement.
“The ratification of this policy affirms the college’s commitment to develop men with disciplined minds who will lead lives of leadership and service.”
Students who identify as non-binary or gender non-conforming are also eligible for admission.
However, the college has outlined that all students are expected to self-identify as men throughout their education at Morehouse.
The college added that if a student transitions from a man to a woman, they will no longer be eligible to matriculate.
“Exemptions from this rule may be granted by a three-person committee appointed by the President after a written appeal is submitted by the student,” according to the college.
“In the event that the impacted student disagrees with the decision of the committee, the student may make a final appeal to the President of Morehouse.”
Graves Hall, Morehouse College (Wiki Commons)
The Gender Identity Policy reads: “If a student decides that, as a men’s college, Morehouse no longer offers the appropriate educational environment for the student, or if an enrolled student begins to self-identify as a woman, we will offer guidance and resources to assist in making choices that are best for that student.”
Despite the new policy, Morehouse said it would continue to use the masculine pronouns and other gendered language, including the language of brotherhood, that university officials felt reflected its mission.
The new policy reads: “Where there is a conflict between the student’s self-identified gender and the sex that appears on documentation such as an academic transcript or documents provided as part of the financial aid process, the student is strongly encouraged to contact the Office of Admissions for a discussion around the desire to attend a single gender men’s college and how they self-identify in terms of gender.”
The policy was developed after 15 months of community engagement with faculty, staff, students and alumni.
Morehouse President David Thomas created a task force that led the community engagement meetings.
Some have criticised Morehouse’s exclusion of trans women, however.
Speaking to CNN, Morehouse graduate Titi Naomi Tukes said: “I unequivocally disapprove of it because it is exclusionary of trans women or gender non-conforming and non-binary students.”
Tukes said when students go to college they usually don’t know themselves and can often question their religion, sexuality or gender during their education.
