Transgender Rights

03.29.19

On Police Violence, Our Legal System and Community Members Disagree

By Emma Keeshin

It was a Saturday in August 2017 when I drove across town to gather in Euclid with family and friends of Luke Stewart, a young father who was killed by Euclid Police after they found him sleeping in his parked car.

03.08.19

ACLU of Ohio Urges Improvements to Cleveland Police’s Search and Seizure Policies

By Emma Keeshin

As part of its consent decree process, the Cleveland Division of Police is revising its search and seizure policies, which govern when and how officers can stop, arrest, and detain community members. Although its 2018 revised drafts represent an improvement, there are still changes that must be made for the policies to comply with basic best practices.

11.15.18

Transgender Day of Remembrance; We Won’t Forget Our 22

By Celina Coming

22. I remember my first year observing Trans Day of Remembrance. There was a vigil being held – everyone was around, heads on shoulders, arms wrapped around one another. We were crying, mourning the death of our siblings who were unjustly taken from us.

03.30.18

Transgender Day of Visibility 2018

By Dan Rogan

In 2009, the Transgender Day of Visibility was created by transgender activist Rachel Crandall-Crocker, who saw a gap in the celebration of transgender individuals among the holidays celebrating LGBTQ+ people. The only day representing transgender individuals back then was the Transgender Day of Remembrance, which is celebrated on November 20.

03.05.18

Black Pride 4 – An Activist’s Perspective

By Celina Coming

There are about half a dozen really clear videos of what went down on June 17, 2017 during the Pride parade in Columbus, OH – shot from all sorts of angles. You can find them all pretty easily. I am watching one of them as I type this.

08.25.17

LGBT Advocacy In Real Time

By Dan Rogan

Remember the empowering and beautiful slogan that went viral in June 2015, “Love Wins?” Can you believe it’s been more than two years since the U.S. Supreme Court issued its landmark decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, confirming the constitutional right to marriage equality?

03.31.17

Today is the International Transgender Day of Visibility

By James Kosmatka

The International Transgender Day of Visibility gives us all an opportunity to show our support for transgender/gender non-conforming (GNC) people while celebrating the incredible tenacity, brilliance and beauty of the transgender/GNC community.

The ACLU of Ohio is deeply committed to supporting transgender visibility and advocacy every day.

02.13.17

“Transgender Spotlight”: You Have Questions, We Have Answers

By James Kosmatka

“In my opinion, the most pressing issue for the trans community is that it is 100% misunderstood,” says Christian, a transgender Ohioan and star of the ACLU of Ohio’s video short film series, Transgender Spotlight.

The ACLU of Ohio agrees.

10.12.16

Voting While Trans: Tips for a Successful Election Day

By James Kosmatka

People who identify as transgender or gender nonconforming (GNC) are expected to clarify, justify and apologize for their identity every day. For many, inappropriate personal questions are a daily reality.  It’s no surprise then, to hear that these same dehumanizing hurdles have worked their way into our polling places.

06.10.16

Transgender People Have Always Existed

By James Kosmatka

The transgender community has been getting a lot of attention lately. Recently, the majority of this attention has centered on public accommodations and the rights of transgender people to use the bathroom that matches their gender identity. All of this media attention leads many to believe that this new phenomenon of “being transgender” is a passing fad, that we’re giving too much attention to a new group of people that have just popped up.

04.22.16

Meeting a Transgender Person Changes Minds

By James Kosmatka

The invisibility which used to cloak the transgender community is starting to fade as transgender people gain more presence in the public eye. Too often they are seen through the prism of violence, but we have also witnessed an increasing amount of public figures come out as transgender in recent years.