NELA says “Yes!” to protecting transgender rights

Three reasons why NELA says “Yes!” to protecting transgender rights:

1. If discrimination and pain comes to one community, it hurts every community. People who are transgender are also your friends, family, and neighbors. We must stand together to protect each other.
2. The transgender community is incredibly vulnerable. They are nine times more likely to attempt suicide in their lifetime, eight times more likely to have experienced severe psychological distress in the last year, twice as likely to be living in poverty, and five times more likely to be living with HIV than the general US population. It is essential to work together to protect the rights of the transgender community.
3. It is crucial to protect the transgender community in New England because it affects transgender people everywhere. States with similar laws will see them challenged, and will hesitate to introduce new protections. If we cannot keep transgender people safe, their community will be threatened everywhere else.