KANSAS CITY, Mo. _ Four transgender individuals born in Kansas filed suit against the state Monday for refusing to change the sex listed on their birth certificates.
The lawsuit, filed with the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Kan., asks the court to declare the state's policy unconstitutional and bar the state from enforcing it. Plaintiffs argue it violates the 14th Amendment's promise of equal protection and due process and the First Amendment.
According to the suit, 47 other states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico allow for changing birth certificates to reflect one's gender identity, but Kansas, Ohio and Tennessee do not. The suit says Kansas does, however, allow residents to change their driver's licenses and state identification cards.
Birth certificates, the lawsuit notes, are often used to prove citizenship, determine employment eligibility or obtain other forms of identification, including a driver's license or passport.
"Put simply, all people need access to a birth certificate that accurately reflects their identity," the lawsuit says. "However, transgender people born in Kansas, unlike cisgender people born in Kansas, do not have access to accurate birth certificates."
All four plaintiffs _ two transgender men and two transgender women _ want to change their Kansas birth certificates to correspond with their gender identity.
When individuals' birth certificates don't match their gender identities, their transgender status can be involuntarily revealed through their birth certificate, which happened to plaintiff Nyla Foster, of Kansas City, the lawsuit says.
"For example, Ms. Foster has been required to present her birth certificate during job application processes," the lawsuit says. "Because her birth certificate inaccurately states that she is male, providing this document has led directly to Ms. Foster being 'outed' as transgender, and subsequently treated suspiciously and disrespectfully by prospective employers."
The lawsuit says mismatches between individuals' birth certificates and their gender identities can also interfere with their ability to pass background checks.
Plaintiffs are being represented, in part, by Lambda Legal, an organization that advocates for civil rights for LGBTQ people and those living with HIV.
