News & Commentary

Kristen Henry, Abuse & Neglect Team Leader, Staff Attorney, Disability Rights Ohio; Andrew Brennan, Staff Attorney, Disability Rights Ohio; Adrienne Gavula, regional director, ACLU of Ohio

Orange is the New Black – the binge-worthy, Peabody Award Winning, Netflix series – returns with Season 4 on June 17. Last season, the fictional Litchfield Correctional Facility faced closing its doors due to lack of funding and is soon after taken over by a private prison corporation.

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. The only problem with this thinking? Transgender people have been around throughout all of human history! Hundreds of Cultures Honor, Celebrate Transgender People Transgender people have existed for as long as humans have been around. In fact, throughout the majority of human history we have recognized (and even celebrated) more than two genders.

Kristen Henry, Abuse & Neglect Team Leader, Staff Attorney, Disability Rights Ohio; Andrew Brennan, Staff Attorney, Disability Rights Ohio; Adrienne Gavula, regional director, ACLU of Ohio

Photo by Erik Dorst from Flickr Commons.