Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund is committed to ending discrimination based upon gender identity and expression and to achieving equality for transgender people through public education, test-case litigation, direct legal services, and public policy efforts.
Today, a new national campaign advocating for urgent passage of the Equality Act launched with support from hundreds of the nation’s top leaders in civil rights, faith, education, health care, and advocacy. The Freedom & Opportunity For All campaign will continue growing the nationwide effort (already supported by hundreds of the nation’s top business leaders) advocating for the Equality Act — historic federal legislation that would modernize and improve our nation’s civil rights laws by including explicit, permanent protections for LGBTQ people, as well as women, people of color, and people of all faiths. The Equality Act passed the House with bipartisan support last month and had its first-ever hearing in the Senate last week.
Today, the Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund (TLDEF) lauded the Senate Judiciary Committee’s decision to include testimony from Stella Keating, a transgender high school student, in its hearing on the Equality Act.
“Trans youth are under attack across the country. We are heartened that senators will hear directly from a young trans person about the impact their votes will have on her life,” said Andy Marra, Executive Director of TLDEF. “As the senators of the Judiciary Committee will hear today, there is no time to waste in passing the Equality Act. Trans lives hang in the balance.”
Aetna, a CVS Health company, with the Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund (TLDEF) and national civil rights law firm Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll, today announced that Aetna has expanded coverage of gender-affirming surgery to include breast augmentation for transfeminine members of most of its commercial plans. The announcement is the result of collaboration between Aetna, TLDEF, Cohen Milstein, and several transgender beneficiaries.
TLDEF with partners Garden State Equality and Lowenstein Sandler secure removal of name change publication requirement through an amended rule as decided by New Jersey Supreme Court. At a time when transgender people are experiencing increased rates of poverty and unemployment, court and publication fees can be insurmountable barriers to accessing affirming and life-saving identity documents. Removing these requirements makes the process and the courts more accessible.
A federal court struck down Alabama’s unconstitutional policy of explicitly requiring surgery before issuing transgender people an accurate driver’s license. TLDEF senior counsel Gabriel Arkles served as lead counsel on the matter.
TLDEF welcomes nationally-recognized transgender civil rights attorney, Gabriel Arkles, as Senior Counsel. Arkles joins TLDEF as a career activist, advocate, and law professor. Previously, Arkles was a Senior Staff Attorney at the ACLU, Staff Attorney at the Sylvia Rivera Law Project, and in academia at the New York University School of Law and Northeastern School of Law.
Learn about our Name Change Project process or fill out a confidential Name Change Project intake form.
Email: namechange@transgenderlegal.org*
* Please note that we are unable to provide intakes or legal advice by email.
Updated on Mar 23, 2021
