LULAC: Administration’s Act Against The Transgender Community Is Cruel And Wrong

Nation’s Oldest and Largest Latino Civil Rights Organization Calls Denial of Protections From Discrimination An Act of Bullying

Washington, DC - The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) issued a strong statement denouncing the Trump Administration’s actions Friday ending protections for transgender patients against sex discrimination by doctors, hospitals and health companies.

“This a deliberate and hateful act directed squarely at human beings in every corner of our country; our fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, trans, and gender-nonconforming family members who are now being deemed unworthy of the most fundamental rights enshrined in the spirit of our nation’s Constitution,” said Rudy Rosales, State Director of Texas LULAC. Rosales is the first gay man ever elected to the organization’s highest office in the state where LULAC was founded in 1929.

The increased protections for all segments of the population were included in the Affordable Care Act created in 2010 under President Barack Obama. In 2016, the Trump Administration vowed to eradicate these provisions and have dismantled them in housing, education, employment and now, health care. The Department of Health and Human Services will no longer recognize gender identity as a valid basis for transgender patients claiming discrimination if denied medically appropriate services or coverage.

“What makes this action even more offensive is the timing of its announcement on the four-year anniversary of the massacre of our LGBTQ+ community in Orlando, Florida and during Pride month, one of the most important observances to many Americans every year. There is absolutely nothing that can justify the insult and damage this Administration is inflicting on innocent transgender people whose only cry is for the same treatment every other American receives, no more or no less. This only strengthens our resolve to fight back and restore protections each and every one of us rightfully deserves, ” said Rosales.

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About LULAC
The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) is the nation’s largest and oldest civil rights volunteer-based organization that empowers Hispanic Americans and builds strong Latino communities. Headquartered in Washington, DC, with 1,000 councils around the United States and Puerto Rico, LULAC’s programs, services and advocacy address the most important issues for Latinos, meeting critical needs of today and the future. For more information, visit www.LULAC.org.