Hundreds of transgender federal prisoners in the United States have been gripped by fear following an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on his first day in office, ordering the transfer of transgender inmates to facilities aligned with their biological sex.
Lawyers have raised the alarm about the potential dangers faced by transgender women who will now be moved to men's prisons, warning of serious risks.
“It's going to be incredibly dangerous,” lawyer Moira Meltzer-Cohen told DailyMail.com. Meltzer-Cohen, who represents Donna Langan, a transgender woman serving a life sentence for bank robbery, expressed concern for the safety of her client and others, fearing a possible “bloodbath.”
The executive order stipulates that the federal government will only recognize two sexes: male and female.
Therefore, access to intimate spaces such as prisons and shelters will now be determined strictly by biological sex and not gender identity.
According to DailyMail.com, a federal public defender in Massachusetts highlighted the plight of a transgender inmate in Minnesota. Sandra Gant, the defender, described how the inmate was abruptly informed of the transfer, leaving her “terrified.”
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“His family reached out in a panic,” Gant said in a message circulated among public defenders. “As of this morning, she, along with others at FCI Waseca, have been segregated and told they are being processed at a transfer center and then a men's prison.”
Gant asked for ideas or assistance, particularly from organizations like the ACLU, to challenge the policy.
In addition to changes to prison policy, Trump's order revoked several protections for transgender people. The directive prohibits federal funding for transition-related services and requires the use of the term “sex” instead of “gender” in official documentation.
Federal agencies have also been ordered to stop funding initiatives that promote what the order calls “gender ideology.”
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