Good News

We keep on making headway in the Blue states while Red states regress on our rights

California makes history with first openly transgender judge appointed to bench
LA Times
By Gregory Yee
March 25, 2022


One of California’s eight newest judges is the first openly transgender person to be appointed to the bench in the Golden State, officials said.

Andi Mudryk, 58, will serve as a judge in Sacramento County Superior Court, filling the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Benjamin Davidian, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office said Friday in announcing a batch of judicial appointments and nominations.

“I’m humbled, honored and I’m thrilled,” Mudryk told The Times on Friday. “I’m grateful to Gov. Newsom for creating a vision of California for all.”

Mudryk has lived in Sacramento since 2009 and said she feels proud to serve the community.

[…]

The California Judges Assn. also praised the appointment.

“The historic selection of the first openly transgender person to the bench represents a significant milestone reached in ensuring our judiciary reflects the diverse communities it serves,” said Rupert Byrdsong, a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge who also serves as the association’s president.

“As CJA embraces its commitment toward diversity and inclusion, we applaud Gov. Newsom’s wisdom in selecting Ms. Mudryk — an exemplary and well-qualified candidate,” Byrdsong said.

She is not the first trans judge, as a matter of fact the first trans judge was appointed in 2010 and then was elected on her right. The State Bar of Wisconsin Association wrote this about her,

Phyllis Frye: The Grandmother of the Transgender Rights Movement
Phyllis Frye, an attorney and judge in Texas, became an open transgender woman in the 1970s, and has fought to promote and protect transgender rights ever since. She is a featured speaker at the upcoming Health, Labor, and Employment Law Institute.
By Joe Forword
July 17, 2019


Phyllis Frye fully transitioned from a man to a woman in 1976, living in Houston, when it was still illegal to cross-dress in public. Her community excluded and shunned her. But in 2010, she became the first (out) transgender judge in the country.

Attorney Frye, who practices law at her own, six-attorney firm in Houston, is a featured speaker on day one of the State Bar of Wisconsin’s upcoming Health, Labor, and Employment Law Institute, August 15-16, at the Wilderness Resort in Wisconsin Dells.

In this article, Attorney Frye discusses her transition experience, including her fight against exclusionary laws, and building a law practice. Known as the “grandmother” of the transgender civil rights movement, Frye sheds light on the decades-long struggle.

[…]

Frye has long opposed so-called bathroom bills and restroom laws that deny access to gender-based restrooms by individuals who do not identify with their gender at birth. That fight began while she was in law school, at the University of Houston.

[...]

In 2010, Houston Mayor Annise Parker appointed Frye as the first, out, transgender judge in the nation. It is a part-time position as associate municipal judge for the city of Houston. Over the decades, Frye has worked tirelessly to assert transgender rights.

In the 1990s, she convened conferences on transgender law, including the first International Conference on Transgender Law and Employment Policy.

That conference resulted in an International Bill of Gender Rights (easily Googled), which proclaimed that everyone has a right to define their own gender identity. Frye stayed active politically, engaging in lobbying activity at the local, state, and federal level to promote equality.

[…]

“If every LGBTQ person came out of the closet, it would do a lot of good but we are still in the minority,” Frye said. “So, we depend on allies.” Frye says in this day and age, social courage is an important aspect of the movement to protect transgender rights.

Did you know that she had a connection to the Connecticut Outreach Society?

I wrote about it in my blog back in 2006.

Phyllis Frye is a Civil Rights lawyer in Texas and the person that she is representing if a former COS member who moved down to Texas a couple of years ago...

I saw her at Fantasia Fair one time and she told the story and she told a story about getting Texas to change the gender marker on their driver license, she knew that they needed  the right judge and the right client.

The client was a trans man who needed to get his driver license gender marker changed. When the judge called “her” name this man with a full beard and a deep male voice stood up. Ms. Frye said the judge looked over the top of his glasses and said “Granted.”