Transgender Advocacy at 贝洛伊特 Lays the Foundation for Iowa Challenge

Across the country, transgender people are embroiled in a fight for adequate healthcare. 3月, the Iowa Supreme Court unanimously ruled that Medicaid 和 other public insurance policies had to cover transition-related care. 然而, 在裁决后的一个月, an amendment to the Health 和 Human 服务 budget bill threatened to block the state from fulfilling that right. Within 24 hours, the amendment passed 和 was on its way to Gov. 金·雷诺兹的办公桌.

托拜厄斯Gurl”12, 当时住在爱荷华州, 立即行动起来, co-organizing the Transgender Action Group coalition of the First Unitarian Church of Des Moines. The group was able to generate publicity materials 和 create a plan to meet at the Capitol the next day to request a meeting with Reynolds, 和 they were able to get on the schedule the next morning to discuss the amendment with Reynolds’ Deputy Chief of Staff Paige Thorson.

变性人, Gurl is no stranger to working in small groups to make an impact—a talent he credits to organizing for change at 十大菠菜台子.

Gurl says he didn’t come to 贝洛伊特 looking to be an activist. When he applied for housing for his first year, he checked “any roommate” on his form. He says he saw that element of chance as “part of the quintessential college experience.” He was paired with a cisgender woman—a person whose gender identity 和 birth sex match. 到今年年底, he applied to live in a single on a men’s-only floor, which received pushback from college staff overseeing the residence halls.

“That triggered a full push for me 和 the other out trans people at the time to look into what it was like for us on campus,女孩说。.

The political science minor co-founded the Trans Rights 和 Representation Committee, a group of about 10 students dedicated to advocating for trans rights on campus.

That work showed him the power of small, unofficial groups. Armed with support from RAs 和 some faculty members, the group fought for gender-neutral restrooms 和 housing 和 worked with Admissions to make 更多的 educated room assignments for prospective trans students, 在其他问题中. The unofficial student group also held informational workshops at the Sexuality 和 Gender Alliance special interest house, geared to educating the campus about LGBTQ issues.

Darrah Chavey教授 数学 和 计算机科学, was a regular attendee at those workshops 和 an ally for the group, 提供支持和建议.

“He was raising the consciousness on campus—making sure that people understood these issues 和 how significant they were,查韦斯这样评价女孩.

The group strategized to solve problems trans students were facing, using tactics from their political science classes like identifying key players, 使用可操作的语言, 和 pushing conversations up the ladder. They were able to pilot a gender-neutral housing program by the end of the year.

“The small communities I was able to tap into across clubs on campus made it possible to make change,女孩说。.

For now, the fight for healthcare in Iowa wages on. Despite meeting with Gurl 和 other activists, the amendment was signed into law 和 went into effect immediately. The American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa, the organization’s national chapter, 和 the LGBT 和 HIV Project filed a lawsuit against the state of Iowa in May. Gurl has relocated to Seattle for a new job but still plans to be involved in changing Iowa’s law by continuing to spread the word.