The US Supreme Court has enabled the Trump administration to put into effect the latest US government passport policy that prevents individuals from designating a gender marker on their passport that does not correspond to their gender assigned at birth.
The decision comes without a signed opinion, issued on an emergency basis, in which the court lifted a lower court injunction that had blocked enforcement of the policy while a class action lawsuit proceeds.
As per the latest policy shift, the Department of State will roll out and accept documents only if the gender marker aligns with birth birth-assigned, as that reverses past practice under the previous administration that allowed for self-selected gender markers, including a non-binary X option.
In the latest dissent, three liberal justices warned that the decision enabled the government to inflict harm on trans people by denying them identity-congruent travel documents and subjecting them to potential humiliation.
The government further argued that change is all about accuracy in official documents and aligned passports with the government’s view of biological gender.
Meanwhile, opponents argued that it discriminates and undermines equal protection rights.