13 in 2013: Victory in Delaware

Today transgender people in Delaware celebrate the passage of a statewide Gender Identity Nondiscrimination Bill. Governor Markell pledged to sign the bill within an hour of passage, making Delaware the seventeenth state to prohibit discrimination based on gender identity alongside California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington, as well as the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.

NCTE pitched in on efforts to pass the Gender Identity Nondiscrimination Bill through training and support to Equality Delaware. Executive Director Mara Keisling praised key players: “Equality Delaware and Governor Markell have put in a lot of hard work to get this bill through. Delaware showed up big for transgender rights today.”

Delaware’s success in securing equal treatment for its transgender citizens is an important step forward in the march towards full equality nationwide. Though Delaware is by no means the first state to pass such a law, there are still many people left unprotected and many states left to be inspired by Delaware’s actions. NCTE continues to work toward further achievements on its 13th goal for 2013, "the passage of new transgender rights laws and policies at the state and local levels."