I Didn’t Know, Did You?

I was in a heated discussion back about twenty years ago, I wrote that we were protected in New Hampshire because their non-discrimination law, but… we were protected under the disability laws in New Hampshire and I agreed we are not disabled however, it is protection for us and I take protecting us over being list as disabled. Well I didn’t know that the federal disability was changed to include us. In Virginia the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has ruled,

The ‘Americans with Disabilities Act’ Will Now Cover Gender Dysphoria

GenderGP

September 15, 2022

The US Federal Court ruled in August 2022 that gender dysphoria will now be covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act 1990, ensuring that trans people will have more protections under the country’s anti-discrimination laws.

Gender dysphoria is the mismatch between a person’s sex assigned at birth and their gender identity. This can cause serious feelings of discomfort and distress. The DSM-5 (the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) also outlined that not treating trans people with gender dysphoria has the potential to cause intense mental harm, including suicidal ideation.

[…]

In August of this year, the US Federal Court ruled to include gender dysphoria in the Americans with Disabilities Act. This decision came after Kesha Williams, an incarcerated trans woman, was denied access to gender-affirming healthcare and lack of gendered facilities in prison. A federal appeals court found this discriminating circumstance to violate the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

[…]

A lower court initially dismissed Williams’ complaint in part due to the fact that the term gender dysphoria is not defined as a disability under the Act. However, the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled in her favour, making the decision irreversible.

Williams’ case is not claiming that being trans should be considered a disability, but rather that gender dysphoria relating to false social norms around gender roles and expression, and society’s mistreatment of trans people, can be disruptive and disabling. Coming within the scope of the ADA should afford a new level of protection against discrimination for those trans people that do experience gender dysphoria.

In writing the Majority Opinion, Judge Diana Gribbon Motz stated the ruling “affirms that a transgender person’s medical needs are just as deserving of treatment and protection as anyone else’s”

I still say any port in the storm… anything to stop Trump and tie him up in court like he likes to do.