Last month a transgender (biologically female) child sued the state of New York. The lawsuit was filed because the transgender child wished to change the sex listed on their birth certificate.
Up until this lawsuit, changing the sex designation on a minor’s birth certificate was not allowed under New York law. It was only allowed for adults.
The legal team of the transgender child argued that not being allowed to change the sex listed on one’s birth certificate to match one’s claimed gender identity was a violation of both the 1st and 14th amendments.
The transgender child won the lawsuit. It is now legal for a minor to change the sex listed on their birth certificate if they have parental approval.
Letitia James, Attorney General of the state of New York, agreed with the decision.
James referred to the former law as, “an outdated policy to stop us from providing every individual with equal dignity and respect.” She also called the action of changing one’s sex on their birth certificate a “deeply personal decision” that transgender persons should be able to make “without the government’s unwarranted denial or without having their privacy violated.”
Despite the reasons given for the change in the law, it’s obviously foolish to think this won’t cause problems later down the road. Allowing someone to change their gender or sex on an official government document, especially a birth certificate, has some (to put it mildly) unintended consequences.
For instance, what jail/prison do they go to if they serve time? If a man transitions to woman, will they end up in the womans’ prison?
Do female inmates have a right to not have a biological male in prison with them, especially if said male has a physical attraction towards them? What safety risks does that create?
What about sports? Men clearly have differing athletic abilities from women. If official documents show a biological male to be a female, won’t that leave biologically female athletes at an “unwarranted” disadvantage?
Are there any stipulations to the changes? Does one have to continue to get hormone treatments?
Can one get the sex listed on all of their official government documents changed, but then start living as their originally so-called “assigned” sex and never change the documents back?
Also, a minor being allowed to change the sex on such documents brings its own set of problems.
Is someone under 16 years old truly able to make such a drastic and consequential decision? Will they be able to change their gender back if they change their mind when they are an adult?
These concerns are only the tip of the iceberg. Only time will tell what complications will come about due to everyone being allowed to change their sex on their official government documents.