North Carolina Your Bigotry is Showing

This week I had one of the greatest feelings of affirmation since coming out two years ago. The lovely state of Maryland sent me my new original, amended birth certificate. It now has the most beautiful F I have received on official documentation. As someone born with intersex chromosomes what I was assigned at birth is not who I am. Now, with the help of my doctor, and an affirming state I got the first step out of the way. Next was on to updating records in North Carolina, because I have the document that states my gender.

Well, here is the kicker. North Carolina can deny my gender anyway. To update my license I have to submit to the same standards as I would to change my birth certificate in this state. Which is I need documentation that says I’ve undergone “gender reassignment surgery” or “irreversible medical treatment”.

The worst part of all of this, is I’ve updated my own birth certificate but this state has the right to deny my birth gender still. It is bigoted enough to have passed a law that restricts bathroom usage to what’s on your birth certificate, but now to deny the validity of your birth certificate is unreal. Honestly, it is like living in a totalitarian state, where they give you a document and then say, sorry that isn’t real anymore.

Even now DMV offices in more conservative places are intentionally misgendering transgender citizens, asking if they are trying to “trick” someone, and remarking that we have “smart-ass” doctors that are fighting the system and what God intended.

North Carolinians, I implore you more than ever to stand up for equality. We live in a state that has a super majority of Republicans that are making life unbearable for transgender people, and their friends, family, spouses, and partners. We can do better. We can stop this. Cisgender people, please go and record these interactions, post them. Support your transgender family members.

North Carolina, this bigotry needs to end. We need to defeat politicians that refuse to acknowledge science, and who try to push religion into a secular system.

We in the trans community have always been resilient. This will not stop us, and we will achieve our rights.