I spoke with Congressman Maloney after the caucus made their announcement. "There was a time when progress on lesbian and gay civil rights was literally put at the expense of other types of minority communities, particularly the transgender community. We're not going to do that anymore," he said. "What we're really saying is that all human beings experience sexual orientation and gender identity, and across that entire spectrum, wherever you fall, you have rights as an American."We don't want the young transgender person to feel afraid anymore. We don't want you to be excluded, or to feel like you don't have a place in the highest places of your own government.
In the first ten minutes, one of the congressman present thanked the panelists for coming to Washington, and then apologized because he had to step away. Throughout the duration of the forum, Congress members cycled in and out due to their demanding schedules. All spoke with gratitude for the panelists and expressed passionate concern for the plight of violence facing trans people."Its absolutely critical that we all have a better understanding of the problems that you face on a daily basis that society has not yet answered," Kennedy said, adding that even in his home state of Massachusetts, which is "leading the way for civil rights and LGBT rights, we're still in the midst of a debate over two bills that would add gender identity to the list of protected classes."We must recognize how race, socioeconomic status, immigration status, ability, and english proficiency all contribute to the violence against transgender women of color.
Harper Jean Tobin is the Policy Director of NCTE, the leading social justice advocacy organization for transgender people in the United States. She addressed Congress by speaking to the public perception of the advancement of the transgender movement. When people speak of this progress, Tobin said, "they're referring to the tremendous increase in public visibility and understanding that we've seen in the last few years for transgender people. It's very real," she affirmed, adding, "People certainly are seeing and hearing more about transgender people than before and that bodes very well for families and for many young people who are more likely to see somebody like themselves on TV or in their community."I don't know that this congress, as it is currently composed, is going to take action.
"You're absolutely right," said Chad Griffin, President of the HRC. "The environment today is perhaps not going to get us to a place of passage, but that can't slow down our determination." He affirmed that there are examples of cities with progressive local policies and programs, including San Francisco and New York City. "But at the end of the day these vital protections, these common sense human and civil rights protections, should come from our federal government.""When they don't, we're left to the whims of political campaigns like we just saw in Houston, Texas," Griffin said. (In Houston, earlier this month, an equal rights ordinance that would have provided protections to a vast array of marginalized demographics—including transgender people—was shot down by a smear and fear-mongering campaign that slandered the lives of trans people by depicting them as predators of children.)"Because there are no explicit protections on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation in this country, it has caused local municipalities to bring about their own protections, as happened at the Houston city council," said Griffin. "If the history of our country tells us one thing: the rights and the protections of minorities in this country should not be left up to the whims of political campaigns and elected officials at the local level. That should come from our federal government."These vital protections, these common sense human and civil rights protections, should come from our federal government.