Transgender people still face barriers to competent health care
According to a US Trans Survey conducted by the National Center for Transgender Equality, a third of trans people face discrimination from their healthcare providers.
Sunny Bryant is about to start a new life with middle school in California.
Sunny, a pint-sized transgender activist, testified four years ago before the Texas legislature to a bill restricting trans rights in the state. However, her family says that activism is not working and they are worried that she will not be able to access medical care.
“The fear of losing her rights came true,” said Sunny’s mother, Rebekah Bryant. “She can’t play sports. She’s an athlete. She’s not a big kid. She’s a small person, but she’s competitive and wants to play.
And then, the seventh generation “proud Texan” Rebekah and her family left the Houston-area home they all love in California, and traded the three-bedroom home for a 900-square-foot apartment and pool.
Passing through the final leg of the trip in late July, Sunny’s mom, Rebekah, drove the family’s car with her dog and spoke to us today in USA.
“It was a long, hard drive,” Rebekah said.
Anti-Trans Law from Florida to Washington
Bryants will not only accept or consider moving to places that feel more trans and LGBTQ-friendly.
A study published in May by the Williams Institute at UCLA Law School found that almost half (48%) of transgender adults have either moved or are considering moving to a more compatible location. Most of them are 45%, and they are considering moving from the US, the study found.
Their reasons are practical and emotional. 76% cited concerns about LGBTQ rights in general, while 71% cited hostile social and political environments. “Respondents from non-supportive communities and states, states with unsupported laws and policies, and those worried about federal policies that affect healthcare access, discrimination and vulnerability to hate crime, wanted to move into a more transgender violation,” the Williams Institute wrote.
This is part of a major trend for Americans to sort themselves politically and geographically and “sort” into like-minded communities, including conservatives looking for “red” states such as Texas. Real estate company Redfin said in 2022 that people are “moving to a place that matches their politics.”
For Bryants, Texas laws have encouraged them to look for a new home. Trans Legislation Tracker monitors 134 anti-trans invoices in Texas, affecting many aspects of daily life, including bathroom use, health care, education, incarceration, marriage, civil rights, adoption, and pronouns.
Trackers found 121 legislation restricting transgender rights has become law in 28 states, including Alaska, Alabama, Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Iowa, Idaho, Montana, Dakotas, Carolina, New Hampshire, Ohio and Virginia.
There are 81 anti-transgender bills introduced in the US Congress, Tracker says, which impacts healthcare, military service, sports, adoption, marriage, education, employment and parental rights.
Opponents of gender-maintaining care for minors say they are defending “child amputation” and providing that care to children with care that includes surgery, hormones and adolescent blockers can lead to infertility and loss of bone density. They cite possible long-term physical and psychological harms.
Many medical professional organizations, including the American Medical Association, KFF and the American Psychological Association, say criminalising gender-affirming care can cause serious harm to the mental well-being of transgender youth.
Sunny: Like a little child, for sure of himself
Sunny Bryant, her mother said, always knew who she was.
At the age of four, she was in the car seat and was mad at her parents to “make” her boy. An unusually happy baby (Briants’ friends called her “baby Buddha” because of her carefree attitude), Sunny was raised without any particular gender constraints, Rebekah said. Bryant let her put on a dress when she asked. They all went to treatment to ensure that the family was doing the best for their oldest child. She chose a name that clearly matches her temperament and her identity.
Meanwhile, Bodhi is two years old and Rebekah calls him “the youngest allies ever.” The family lived in Australia at the time and Sunny was ready to go to kindergarten, so they realized that the others might not be that kind.
They spoke with the priest at the Catholic school where Sunny was about to attend. He agreed that she could use a pronoun that fits her identity, but not the usual one assigned to a girl, and can only wear a gender-neutral gym uniform.
Bryants returned to the US, and Rebekah admitted that the whole family, including her “Trump-loving stepmother,” had a learning curve, but that was something they were willing to take on.
Though she’s older, not too old, Sunny became a transgender activist and spoke before the Texas Legislature as she weighed the potential for trans athletes to participate in women’s sports. She attracted the public’s attention for calm, strength and persuasiveness, and even impressed supporters of laws that banned girls’ competition in sports in schools. The bill was eventually passed and became law.
The Texas legislative tide was too difficult to ignore, and Bryants knew they had to “finally go.” She began looking for employment in other states, and eventually she was offered an educational position called “dream job.”
But that wasn’t easy. The travel is a huge expense, and Bryants have launched a GoFundMe campaign that has raised over $13,000 so far. The cost of living in the San Francisco Gulf region where they are moving is much higher than in Texas. Rebekah said it’s worth the problem for Bryants and their children.
“(Sunny) deserves an opportunity to grow and thrive,” she wrote in Gofundme. “As parents, we deserve the right not to be criminalised to love who she is. It’s not sunny to be affected by what the Texas Legislature did. It’s the whole family. We’ve had enough.”
Movement also means starting over. For Chet and Rebekah, for Sunny and Bodhis, who have built a community of allies, friends and colleagues, leaving their beloved teachers and friends behind. They had been selling homes in the Houston area, but after just four years they didn’t build much equity. They packed all their possessions into a 16-foot truck.
Still, he feels that a new beginning is right for all four Bryant, Rebekah said.
“When I arrived in California, I cried out as I crossed the Colorado River,” she said. “Just knowing it was sunny, I had more rights to just cross that river. If you could see both us and both…it was like Permaglins since we got here.”
