The Supreme Court did something positive for trans people by doing nothing

The U.S. Supreme Court has issued several rulings lately that have set back LGBTQ+ rights, including last week’s decision that some businesses can discriminate against queer customers. Still, in a rare move, the Court also threw a lifeline to transgender people.

The Court declined to review a federal appeals court ruling that people with gender dysphoria were covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). By doing nothing, the Court did something positive for transgender people.

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“By declining to hear this case, the Supreme Court implicitly acknowledges what those who have seriously examined the issue have concluded: the ADA protects people who experience gender dysphoria, including transgender and nonbinary people, from being discriminated against on that basis, “Olivia Hunt, policy director for the National Center for Transgender Equality, said in a statement.

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The 4th Circuit Court of Appeals found last year that a transgender prisoner was entitled to reasonable accommodations and is protected from discrimination after she sued due to unjust treatment by the Fairfax County sheriff in Virginia. The ruling is only binding in the states covered by the court: Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina.

Kesha Williams informed the jail’s nurse that she has gender dysphoria and has been taking hormone treatment for 15 years. While she was initially assigned to the women’s side of the jail, she was moved to the men’s section after explaining that she had not had genital surgery.

Officials and other inmates harassed Williams, she claims, and her medication was regularly skipped or delayed. Her request to shower privately was denied, as was her request that a female deputy perform any body searches.

A federal judge initially ruled that Williams didn’t have standing to bring the lawsuit, because the ADA excluded “gender identity disorders not resulting from physical impairments.”

The appeals court reversed the decision, noting that there is a distinction between gender dysphoria and gender identity disorder. The American Psychiatric Association has removed gender identity disorder from the current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and added gender dysphoria. It is defined as the “clinically significant distress” experienced by some transgender people that can lead to depression, suicidal ideation, and intense anxiety.

The ruling brings into question recent laws passed in Republican-led legislatures nationwide that attempt to outlaw gender-affirming care and nondiscrimination protections for trans people. Several laws have already been struck down or put on hold by federal judges.

“The overwhelming majority of Americans support nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQIA+ people, and today’s decision means the ADA remains a mechanism that can help our communities secure those protections,” Hunt said.