GLM on U.S. v Skrmetti
Gender Liberation Movement on U.S. v Skrmetti case: SCOTUS is Illegitimate, Bought By Bigots
In response to the Supreme Court hearing U.S. v. Skrmetti, a critical case that will decide the future of gender-affirming care for young people, Gender Liberation Movement released the following statement:
On December 4th, The Supreme Court of the United States heard oral arguments in U.S. vs. Skrmetti, a case concerning a block on gender-affirming care for transgender youth in Tennessee. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Lambda Legal are suing the state on behalf of Samantha and Brian Williams of Nashville, their 15-year-old daughter, two anonymous plaintiff families, and Dr. Susan Lacy of Memphis, TN. This case is historic for many reasons. It is considered the most significant trans rights case brought to the court. Additionally, ACLU attorney Chase Strangio, on behalf of the plaintiffs, was the first openly trans person to argue in front of SCOTUS.
The forthcoming ruling in Skrmetti is poised to have far-reaching consequences for healthcare access for trans people of all ages, particularly impacting an estimated 140,000 youth living in states with bans on gender-affirming care. The conditions surrounding this case are already concerning. Currently, 26 states have enacted legislation that partially or fully ban gender-affirming care for trans youth, forcing thousands of families to become refugees in their own country as they seek safety and essential medical care elsewhere. This crisis is the culmination of a decades-long conservative crusade to restrict people’s control over their bodies, choices, genders, and futures. This Far-Right agenda ignores the reality that most people do not fit into their binary understanding of gender and sex. It seeks to coerce and monitor everyone’s reproductive healthcare decisions, erasing those who do not conform, particularly trans, nonbinary, gender expansive, and intersex people.
These malevolent forces gained significant ground with the overturning of Roe v. Wade, which not only dismantled reproductive rights but also emboldened efforts to control the bodies of trans people In fact, Skrmetti, named for Tenn. Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti, leveraged the Dobbs decision as legal precedent to argue for a ban on gender-affirming care. He used an abortion ban as justification for denying trans youth access to critical healthcare based solely on having a gender that doesn’t correspond with their sex assigned at birth. This discriminatory law curtails access to puberty blockers and hormone replacement therapy while permitting these treatments for cisgender youth, highlighting a blatant violation of the 14th Amendment and the U.S. Constitution.
Ultimately, we must defend and empower families to make their own decisions regarding gender-affirming care in tandem with their healthcare professionals. We must also understand that the attacks against access to abortion and gender-affirming care are intertwined, so the defense of them must be as well. Right-wing politicians and corrupt judges should not be allowed to strip bodily autonomy and self-determination from any of us.
The Supreme Court, as it is currently constructed, does not represent the will of the Majority on the margins. It is illegitimate and bought by bigots. Publications like Intercept and ProPublica, have exposed the corrupt influence of conservative billionaires and think tanks on Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas. Meanwhile, Amy Coney Barrett and Brett Kavanaugh, court appointees from the first Trump presidency, were pushed through despite intense criticism of Far-Right activism, cronyism, and sexual assault allegations. Now, these destructive justices will continue to decide the fates of generations to come.
GLM believes the Court must be reformed with term limits, an expansion of seats, and binding ethics guidelines prohibiting corruption in all forms. Until this happens, SCOTUS decisions against our healthcare and civil rights should be seen as illegitimate and not complied.
GLM is committed to building a collective that responds to gender-based cultural and political attacks. Every person has the inherent power to make decisions about their own bodies, determine their own futures, and build a world liberated from the gendered restrictions that harm and limit us all. Lives are at stake and we must act now.
Media Interviews are available with Raquel Willis, Co-founder of Gender Liberation Movement, as well as with impacted families with trans, nonbinary, and gender-expansive kids.
ABOUT: GENDER LIBERATION MOVEMENT (GLM) is an emergent and innovative grassroots and volunteer-run national collective that builds direct action, media, and policy interventions centering bodily autonomy, self-determination, the pursuit of fulfillment, and collectivism in the face of gender-based sociopolitical threats.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Eliel Cruz, Co-founder/Director of Communications