December 8, 2006
NYC BACKS OUT ON BIRTH CERTIFICATE CHANGES
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On Tuesday, the New York City's Board of Health unexpectedly withdrew a proposal that would have allowed people to alter the sex on their birth certificates. In a move on the vanguard of the gender justice movement, the law would not have required sex-change surgery though a doctor must verify the gender change was permanent.
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Defending the surprise halt in a seemingly smooth road to passage, Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden argued New York City cannot lead on this issue. "This is something we hadn't fully thought through, frankly....What the birth certificate shows does have implications beyond just what the birth certificate shows."
Dr. Sixto R. Caro, a board member and private practitioner in Brooklyn and Manhattan, said, "We must make the decision together with the Department of Health of New York State. That's one of the reasons we had no choice but to wait."
NYC Council Speaker Christine Quinn does not so underestimate New Yorkers' ability to lead social progress. She responded to the reversal with disappointment and has already begun conversations with the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to better understand their rationale.
"New York City should be the leader on this fundamental human rights issue and I will continue to work with local organizations and groups to advocate for New York City's transgender citizens, and to see what can be done to move this issue forward," she said.
WANT TO LEARN MORE?
Check out the Sylvia Rivera Law Project here .
Or this article by Pauline Park, chair of the New York Association for Gender Rights Advocacy (NYAGRA), and Michael Silverman is executive director and general counsel of the Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund (TLDEF).