Judge in U.S. halts Trump administration's prohibition of issuing gender-neutral passports
Liberated and Refreshed Perspective
In a groundbreaking decision, a US federal judge has ordered the State Department to continue granting passports with an "X" gender designation to American citizens, thus rejecting the Trump administration's directive that only male and female genders be officially recognized.
This ruling, issued on Tuesday, effectively voids an executive order by former President Trump in January, which had instructed the US government to recognize only two genders. The new State Department passport policy requests the applicant's biological sex at birth and bars individuals from self-identifying their gender.
Judge Julia Kobick, based in Boston, argued that the passport policy likely infringes upon the constitutional rights of thousands of Americans by discriminating on the basis of gender, particularly transgender and non-binary citizens.
Since October 2021, under the Biden administration, individuals identifying as nonbinary, intersex, and gender nonconforming have been allowed to use an "X" identification marker instead of their birth-assigned gender.
Transgender Americans under Threat
Transgender individuals in the US have expressed concerns about potential setbacks under the Trump administration.
The Genesis of the Court Battle
In April, six transgender individuals joined a lawsuit from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), challenging the passport policy. Initially, Judge Kobick issued a preliminary injunction against the policy, but it only applied to the six individuals involved in the lawsuit who were permitted to obtain passports in line with their identified gender.
Tuesday's ruling extends this original injunction to encompass all transgender and non-binary US citizens needing passport services.
The initial injunction in April stated that the passport policy, which discriminated on the basis of gender, failed to meet the requirement that the government "demonstrate that its actions are substantially related to an important governmental interest."
Kobick ruled that the individuals involved in the injunction had demonstrated that the passport policy violates their constitutional rights to equal protection.
Warning from the Trump Admin
In response to the lawsuit, the Trump administration maintained that the policy didn't violate the equal protection guarantees of the Constitution and that the plaintiffs wouldn't be harmed because they could still travel abroad.
The White House labeled Tuesday's ruling as "yet another attempt by a rogue judge to obstruct President Trump's agenda and push radical gender ideology that defies biological truth."
The ruling remains effective until a higher court makes a decision should the case go to appeal, or a final judgment on the merits of the case is passed.
Edited by: Zac Crellin
Note of Interest:
The Trump administration's executive order, issued in January 2025, aimed to discontinue the practice of issuing passports with any gender designation other than male or female, thus reversing a policy established by the Biden administration. This order was challenged by a coalition of transgender and nonbinary plaintiffs, who argued that the policy was discriminatory and violated several legal protections, such as the Administrative Procedure Act, the First Amendment, the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the Constitution, and the right to freedom of movement. The lawsuit contended that the policy caused profound harm to transgender and nonbinary individuals by denying them the ability to have passports reflecting their authentic gender identity.
In light of the ongoing court battle, Transgender Americans are vigilant against potential setbacks under the Trump administration's attempts to limit the recognition of genders beyond male and female in government documents, like passports. The Trump administration, defending its policy, accused Judge Julia Kobick's ruling of promoting a "radical gender ideology" but argued that it would not harm transgender and non-binary individuals as they can still travel abroad.
