In a significant legal development, the U.S. Supreme Court has temporarily allowed the Trump administration’s policy requiring passports to display an individual’s biological sex at birth. The conservative-majority court issued an unsigned order on Thursday, freezing a lower court’s decision from Massachusetts that had blocked the policy. The court argued that displaying birth sex on passports does not violate equal protection principles, likening it to displaying a person’s country of birth. This decision marks a reversal of the Biden administration’s policy, which permitted individuals to self-select their gender on passports, including a third ‘X’ option for non-binary individuals. The Supreme Court’s ruling suggests that the Trump administration is likely to succeed in its legal challenge, potentially leading to a final decision upholding the birth sex requirement. The court’s three liberal justices dissented, with Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson criticizing the conservative majority for ‘senseless sidestepping of the obvious equitable outcome.’ The plaintiffs in the case argued that the policy could lead to harassment and violence against transgender individuals. This decision is part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to roll back policies related to transgender rights and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). The State Department had previously allowed passport sex designations to differ from birth sex with medical documentation since 1992. In April, a Massachusetts judge had deemed the Trump policy discriminatory, rooted in ‘irrational prejudice,’ and a violation of equal protection rights under the Fifth Amendment. However, the Supreme Court’s latest action has temporarily halted the enforcement of that ruling.
US Supreme Court lets Trump administration require sex at birth be listed on passports
