These Blue State Attorneys General Are Fighting for Your Rights
A coalition of state AGs have come together to challenge the worst assaults of the Trump regime on trans people’s equal rights.
by Valorie Van-Dieman
Over this last year, we have seen a constant assault on the rights and safety of transgender people in America. Upon taking power, the Trump regime hit the ground running with executive orders and policy changes designed to strip trans people of their rights and dignity. These actions, in turn, have empowered their allies in Republican led states and organizations to follow suit, attacking trans people at every level that they are able.
Numerous institutions have caved to pressure from the administration, turning their backs on trans rights. A couple prominent Democrats have even made a show of reducing their support for their trans constituents,perhaps imagining that this will curry favor with voters on the right, However, one group stands out in having vigorously defended the rights of trans Americans: Attorneys general in Democrat led states. The AGs from Illinois, New York, and Oregon in particular stand out as leading the way.
Since some of the earliest of the Trump regime’s anti-trans policies, Blue state AGs have formed coalition after coalition, repeatedly filing lawsuits, amicus briefs, and official comments disputing the legality of these discriminatory actions. These actions have included an amicus brief supporting a block of Trump’s transgender troop ban, a lawsuit challenging cuts to coverage of gender affirming care by the Affordable Care Act, a joint letter of comment opposing the FTC’s proposed investigation into gender affirming care providers, and a lawsuit against the HHS for conditioning school funding on the application of anti-trans policies.
Actions like these are very welcome and necessary in the midst of the constant deluge of hatred from this regime. “We see how important attorneys general are when it comes to fighting and pushing back,” Mike Ziri of Equality Illinois explained in an interview with Assigned Media, “with the White House not standing up for civil rights protections and defending human rights, it's incumbent on the state to do that work”
While the specific makeup of the blue state coalitions show some variation from action to action, virtually every blue state AG has participated in at least some of these. A few have shown up regularly as the leaders spearheading these actions, with Kwame Raoul, Letitia James, and Dan Rayfield being among the leading names. Assigned Media reached out to several of these AGs in order to better understand what has driven these actions in defense of trans people.
AG Dan Rayfield of Oregon is listed as the lead attorney representing 19 states plus the District of Columbia in a lawsuit challenging a recent HHS declaration that gender-affirming care is unsafe and ineffective for youth. In a statement sent to Assigned Media, Rayfield wrote, “What brought us together is a simple principle: healthcare decisions belong with families and their doctors,” further explaining that actions like the one they were challenging “undermine fundamental rights and [it] is our responsibility as attorneys general to step up.”
This feeling of responsibility towards transgender people was echoed by AG Kwame Raoul of Illinois. In addition to being a party to the lawsuit above, Raoul has also been the co-leader on numerous other actions, including the comment disputing the FTC’s investigation of GAC providers and the filing of an amicus brief in a lawsuit against Trump’s anti trans executive orders by the San Francisco AIDS Foundation. to Assigned Media, explaining “Since coming into office, the Trump administration has relentlessly targeted individuals who are transgender, attacking transgender youth and their medical providers, attempting to illegally withhold funds from states that support access to gender-affirming care, and openly discriminating against transgender members of the military who have honorably served the American people.”
The symbolic nature of such defenses of trans rights are meaningful enough on their own, but they have also proven to be effective. The majority of the actions taken by these various blue AG coalitions have resulted in blocks to and reversals of anti-trans policy, with the regime seemingly unable to meaningfully fight back when met with any resistance to their discriminatory actions.
Not only have these AGs met in united defense at federal levels, many have also been active in protecting rights and maintaining access to healthcare within their own states. Immediately following the first wave of anti-trans executive orders last year, AG Letitia James issued a warning to New York hospitals that they would be held in violation of state law if they capitulated to Trump’s discriminatory orders. And, just this week, CA AG Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit against a California children’s hospital for ceasing gender affirming care, marking the first action taken at ground level to protect this type of care.
These attorneys general have not only been loud in their defense of trans people, but in the defense of minorities more broadly, with the AGs of Illinois and Minnesota each bringing lawsuits against the DHS and ICE in response to the department’s invasion of major cities in each of the states.
As the regime has continually escalated attacks against minorities, many trans people have expressed feeling as though there’s no one standing up in defense of the vulnerable. Democratic Attorneys General demonstrate at least one segment where meaningful pushback against an increasingly authoritarian state continues on.
Raoul concluded his statement to Assigned Media with a sentiment that appears to be shared by each of these AGs, “Every American deserves to live authentically, and I will push back against the administration’s repeated and cruel attempts to erase transgender Americans.”
Valorie Van-Dieman (they/she) is an Associate Editor at Assigned Media. @valorievandieman.bsky.social