Autopen-appointed judge Julia Kobick…
…issued a ruling Tuesday that temporarily blocks the Trump administration from allowing only two genders, male and female, that align with biological sex, on US passports.
Kobick, a US District Court judge for the District of Massachusetts, expanded a preliminary injunction on Tuesday after she ruled in favor of six plaintiffs who identified as transgender or nonbinary in April.
The plaintiffs were challenging a Trump administration rule change that restricted passport sex to align with birth sex, overturning a State Department policy that allowed people to choose the sex displayed on their passport, including an “X” option for individuals who identify as intersex and non-binary.
Kobick stated in her ruling that the suit against the Trump administration is likely to succeed because in her opinion, it discriminates on the basis of sex, and is “rooted in irrational prejudice toward transgender Americans.”
She wrote that “transgender and non-binary people who possess passports bearing sex markers that conflict with their gender identity and expression are… significantly more likely to experience psychological distress, suicidality, harassment, discrimination, and violence.”
In her April ruling, only the six plaintiffs were allowed to receive passports aligning with their gender identity. Tuesday’s ruling expands that order to grant class certification, pausing enforcement of the rule change nationwide, according to the Epoch Times – which notes further:
The Trump administration is likely to appeal the decision. In the interim, Kobick’s order prevents the State Department from enforcing the administration’s revised rules.
The U.S. has permitted individuals who identify as transgender and intersex to choose a different sex for their passport than their birth sex since 1992, pending submission of medical documentation, until the rules were changed in 2021 under President Joe Biden. The Biden administration allowed people to self-select their passport sex marker based on gender identity, while non-binary, intersex, and other individuals were allowed to select an “X” marker rather than “M” or “F.”
Executive Order 14168, signed by Trump, set guidelines for his administration’s broad policy toward sex and gender issues: “It is the policy of the United States to recognize two sexes, male and female,” which “are not changeable and are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality.”
Following the executive order, the State Department changed the rules governing passports. Passport sex was restricted by the rule change to align solely with sex assigned at birth, while it removed the “X” passport option entirely.
Leave Those Kids Alone
Meanwhile, the US Supreme Court ruled in a 6-3 decision to uphold Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors, finding that the law doesn’t violate the 14th Amendment.
The Associated Press characterized the ruling as a “stunning setback to transgender rights.” (lol)
Another 26 states have laws similar to the one in Tennessee.
In April, the Trump administration sued the state of Maine for refusing to comply with the government’s push to ban trans athletes in girls sports. Trump has also sought to block federal spending on gender-affirming care for those under the age of 19 – and instead has advised talk therapy to treat young trannies.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has also allowed Trump to kick trans service members out of the military while legal battles play out in lower courts.
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