Arizona transgender lawsuit has gained class-action status

A lawsuit filed nearly three years ago challenging an Arizona law that required a person to prove they had undergone a “sex change operation” before changing the gender listed on their birth certificate gained class-action status on Thursday.

The National Center for Lesbian Rights, which filed the 2020 lawsuit on behalf of three families with transgender children, announced and lauded the federal court’s decision.

“This ruling means that this case will now benefit all transgender people born in Arizona, not just the individual plaintiffs who originally brought the case,” the NCLR said in a statement.

The San Francisco-based nonprofit cited concerns that transgender people can often be discriminated and persecuted when forced to produce a birth certificate with a listed gender that doesn’t match how they’re presenting.

“Arizona’s outdated surgery requirement is particularly harmful for transgender youth who are effectively barred from correcting the gender marker on their birth certificates because very few transgender young people undergo any surgical treatment,” the organization said. “For young people, their birth certificate affects everything from school records to camp registration.”

Rachel Berg, an NCLR staff attorney, also applauded the decision to give the case class-action status.

“We are thrilled that this case will now apply to all transgender individuals born in Arizona who wish to amend their birth certificates to accurately reflect their gender identity,” Berg said. “Access to correct identity documents is critically important to the health and well-being of transgender people.”

The lawsuit, originally filed on Nov. 4, 2020, alleges that Arizona’s surgery pre-requisite violates the equal protection and due process clauses of the 14th Amendment and is therefore unconstitutional.

The lawsuit further explains that surgeries are often unnecessary if a transgender person takes drugs that delay puberty before the physical changes associated with it can occur.

“The most common surgical procedure that is medically necessary for transgender young people is male chest reconstruction surgery,” the lawsuit reads. “That procedure is specifically for transgender males. However, because of the increasing availability of pubertydelaying medication, an increasing number of transgender boys never develop breasts and therefore never need that surgery.”

The lawsuit cites the American Psychiatric Association’s diagnostic manual, which states children typically become aware of their gender identity between the ages of 2 and 5. The manual recognizes gender dysphoria — feeling discomfort and anxiety from the difference in one’s gender identity and assigned sex — as a legitimate health condition.

The case remains ongoing.

“We are thrilled that this case will now apply to all transgender individuals born in Arizona who wish to amend their birth certificates to accurately reflect their gender identity ... Access to correct identity documents is critically important to the health and well-being of transgender people.”