The Dallas County Commissioners Court passed a resolution affirming the rights of transgender people living in the county earlier this month, marking the first step in a regional transgender rights and bodily autonomy campaign led by the Democratic Socialists of America’s North Texas chapter.
Spearheaded by DSA organizer and transgender rights activist Saya Clarke, the resolution is a product of the group’s desire to enshrine protections for transgender individuals in Dallas’ code while “rebuking” state legislation that bars youth from receiving gender-affirming healthcare.
“Regressive laws are being passed and written every day in all these different states,” Clarke told the Observer. “The main thing I wanted to say in this resolution is that bills and laws being passed at the legislature are unjust. They're not just amoral, they're bad. Bad for politics, bad for community building, bad for business.”
In addition to the Texas Legislature’s ban on gender-affirming care for minors, lawmakers have introduced bills that target drag performances, transgender participation in sports and transgender individuals’ ability to change their sex on their drivers license. Furthermore, a study by The Human Rights Campaign found that Texas laws made up one-fifth of all Anti-LGBTQ+ legislation introduced nationwide in 2023.
Clarke penned the resolution alongside District 1 Commissioner Theresa M. Daniel, who said she was bringing the document forward because “discrimination in any place is wrong” when presenting the resolution to the court.
The resolution calls on the Texas Legislature to protect the rights of transgender Texans, and urges congress to pass the Equality Act, a bill that would update the 1964 Civil Rights Act to include protections against discrimination on the basis of sex, sexual orientation and gender identity. The county’s passage of the resolution marks a win for Clarke, who was searching for political momentum and support ahead of her ultimate goal: designating Dallas as a sanctuary city for transgender individuals.
The term "sanctuary city" is generally used to describe municipalities that offer legal protections to undocumented immigrants despite federal immigration laws. A similar movement has emerged in the transgender rights sphere, with cities like Sacramento, California, New York and Kansas City, Missouri, declaring that city resources will not be used to criminalize transgender individuals seeking transition-related care.
“When we started to try and put together this campaign and do this sanctuary city law in Dallas, it was a really large undertaking,” Clarke said. “I'm trying to get in touch with the city, with the council people … and apparently there is some interest.”
But as a transgender woman who was born and raised in Texas, it isn’t lost on Clarke that as her efforts gain traction, the wave of opposition she faces likely will as well.
After Dallas County passed her resolution, the Dallas Morning News Editorial Board published an editorial calling for the county to “stay out of medical debates and support all its constituencies.”
The editorial board took issue with the resolution’s declaration that “gender affirming healthcare has been proven to be evidence-based, medically necessary, and lifesaving,” pointing to several scientists who say otherwise and stating that it is “troubling” to see the local health authority “leaping ahead of scientific consensus.”
“People of good faith can be concerned about providing permanent medical intervention to minors and about people who have experienced male puberty taking part in female sports without being anti-LGBTQ+. Most Americans recognize that nuance. Dallas County has resolved not to,” the editorial reads.
Undiscouraged, Clarke described the News editorial as “drivel” that was “cut and pasted” from “J.K. Rowling’s Tweets.” (The Harry Potter author has been criticized in recent years for the controversial views of the transgender community she has posted to social media.)
“I think that for some people, their politics aren't necessarily as close to the chest as it is for people like trans people, like Palestinian people, like immigrants and Black people. Our politics are distinct because there are lives on the line,” Clarke said. “I didn't transition until later in life, after [experiencing] the pain and misery of not being able to come out. I think that part of my goal and what I want to do is build a world that is safe and open for trans kids and for queer youth in general, [because] they are constantly under attack.”
