Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman ANNETTE QUIJANO
District 20 (Union)
SYNOPSIS
Designates November of each year as "Transgender Awareness Month."
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
A Joint Resolution designating November of each year as "Transgender Awareness Month."
Whereas, Transgender individuals, who are people whose gender identity, expression, or behavior is different from those typically associated with the person's assigned sex at birth, face considerable challenges in society, including discrimination, harassment, physical abuse, and social isolation; and
Whereas, It is estimated that 1.4 million adults in the United States identify as transgender, a number double that previously thought, while the number of transgender children in the United States is unknown; and
Whereas, Transgender individuals make valuable contributions to every aspect of life, including in academics, architecture, art, business, culture, economic development, education, fashion, film, government, health, law, music, politics, research, science, sports, and technology; and
Whereas, According to the 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey, an anonymous online survey of over 27,000 transgender adults, 10 percent of respondents who were out to their families reported that they had experienced violence from a family member due to their being transgender, while eight percent of respondents reported that they were forced to leave the family home because they were transgender. Nearly 30 percent of survey respondents reported that they had been homeless at some point in their lives; and
Whereas, One-third of survey respondents who saw a health care provider in the year preceding the survey reported having a negative experience related to being transgender, including being refused treatment, verbal harassment, physical or sexual assault, or having to educate the provider in order to get appropriate care; and
Whereas, Transgender individuals are more likely to experience physical violence than those who are not transgender when interacting with law enforcement; and
Whereas, According to the Human Rights Campaign, at least 37 transgender people were murdered in 2020, at least 47 were murdered in 2021, at least 34 were murdered in 2022, and, as of July 2023, at least 14 transgender individuals have been murdered in 2023; and
Whereas, Despite federal legal protections, transgender students face daily challenges in accessing the full array of educational, social, athletic, and after-school activities that are available to students who are not transgender; and
Whereas, More than 75 percent of survey respondents experienced some form of mistreatment, including physical or sexual assault, between kindergarten and grade 12, due to their being out or being perceived as transgender; and
Whereas, Nearly one quarter of survey respondents who were out or perceived as being transgender in college or vocational school reported being verbally, physically, or sexually harassed; and
Whereas, Transgender individuals are disproportionately unemployed due to discrimination, and as a result, their circumstances may be rendered even more difficult by poverty, which survey respondents reported experiencing at more than twice the rate as is experienced in the general U.S. population; and
Whereas, Because of the myriad difficulties they face in the course of their daily lives, transgender individuals experience severe psychological distress, and report attempting suicide at rates almost nine times that of the overall U.S. population; and
Whereas, There has been a significant increase in states introducing legislation that targets transgender individuals and transgender youth in particular. According to the ACLU, as of July 2023, 491 anti-LGBTQI+ bills have been introduced nationwide that would restrict access to health care, housing, education, and free expression; and
Whereas, Pursuant to P.L.2017, J.R.22 (C.36:2-317 et seq.), New Jersey recognizes November 14 through November 20 of each year as "Transgender Awareness Week" in New Jersey; and
Whereas, Pursuant to P.L.2017, J.R.23 (C.36:2-319 et seq.), New Jersey recognizes the last day of "Transgender Awareness Week," November 20, as the "Transgender Day of Remembrance," in memory of Rita Hester, a transgender woman whose brutal murder in Boston in 1998 remains unsolved; and
Whereas, It is fitting and proper to recognize the month of November each year as "Transgender Awareness Month" in New Jersey, in recognition of the prejudice, discrimination, and violence that transgender persons face, as well as in recognition of the beauty, strength, and resilience of the transgender community and the myriad contributions transgender individuals make to the life, culture, and social fabric of the United States; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. November of each year is designated as "Transgender Awareness Month" in the State of New Jersey to increase awareness and understanding of the prejudice, discrimination, and violence that transgender persons face, as well as in recognition of the beauty, strength, and resilience of the transgender community and the myriad contributions transgender individuals make to the life, culture, and social fabric of the United States.
b. The Governor is respectfully requested to annually issue a proclamation calling on public officials and citizens of this State to observe "Transgender Awareness Month" with appropriate activities and programs.
2. This joint resolution shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This joint resolution designates November of each year as "Transgender Awareness Month" in the State of New Jersey, and respectfully calls on the Governor to annually issue a proclamation calling on public officials and citizens of this State to observe "Transgender Awareness Month" with appropriate activities and programs.
Transgender individuals, who are people whose gender identity, expression, or behavior is different from those typically associated with the individual's assigned sex at birth, face considerable challenges in society, including discrimination, harassment, physical abuse, and social isolation.
In the face of a sharp increase in anti-LGBTQIA+ legislation being introduced nationwide, with numerous bills seeking to limit access to health care, housing, education, and free expression for transgender individuals and transgender youth in particular, the Legislature finds it fitting and appropriate to increase awareness and understanding of the prejudice, discrimination, and violence that transgender persons face, as well as to recognize the beauty, strength, and resilience of the transgender community and the myriad contributions transgender individuals make to the life, culture, and social fabric of the United States.