MTPC and MassEquality Respond to the Rejection and Hateful Treatment of a MA Resident’s Passport Application
February 14, 2025
Boston, MA: The Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition (MTPC) and MassEquality have been in contact with a transgender resident of Massachusetts whose US Passport application, new Passport, and supporting documentation were damaged and destroyed. They received a notice that their application had been changed to “show [their] biological sex at birth”. We have connected the applicant to appropriate resources and organizations to address this abhorrent, hateful, and illegal behavior by a government employee.
We are sharing the following information with the consent of the applicant about their situation to allay speculation in the community:
- This passport application was submitted the week prior to the presidential inauguration and was within standard processing times for Passport applications.
- The application was processed at the National Passport Center in Portsmouth, NH. While this is still local, it did not occur at the Boston Passport Agency.
- This is an example of a US Passport application requesting a gender marker change that was denied. The applicant had previously held a passport that had expired over 2 years prior with an ‘F’ gender marker. The application listed an ‘M’ gender marker which was supported by both their birth certificate and photo ID.
- This is not an example of a US Passport gender marker that was previously changed being reverted upon renewal. We still do not have clear information on how renewals such as this will be handled but will share updates in the future.
Both of our organizations are appalled that a federal employee would show such disdain for their responsibilities and for a fellow citizen whom they have sworn to serve. It is clear that the incompetence, lack of empathy, and violent trans antagonism of the Trump regime is not only emboldening hateful behavior, but spreading throughout the government and the civil service.
MassEquality and MTPC stand in solidarity with our trans and nonbinary siblings and community members and remain committed to fighting against injustice, hate, and discrimination such as this. Everyone deserves identity documents that accurately represent themselves and their identities, regardless of anyone else’s beliefs. We believe that it is not the government’s place to determine anyone’s identity for them.
If you experience any issues with updating your identity documents or need help changing your legal name you can request assistance from MTPC’s Identity Document Assistance (IDA) Network.
