Sarah Huckabee Sanders, a former White House press secretary, addresses a summit of the America First Policy Institute initiative held at the Marriott Marquis in Washington on July 26, 2022.
State regulators in Arkansas announced on Tuesday that they will no longer permit drivers to use an “X” for their gender on driver’s licenses, reversing a practice that was only available to nonbinary drivers.
According to the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, state identification is being protected by the changes. Additionally, the organization made it more difficult for transgender people to change the sex on their identification.
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) hailed the announcement, drawing comparisons to contentious conservative culture war talking points.
“This policy is just common sense,” the statement goes. There are only two genders, she said in a statement, and only women who give birth can do so. Men shouldn’t play women’s sports. As long as I’m governor, the state government of Arkansas does not support nonsense.
The move comes in response to Republican state governments’ attempts to legalize identity as binary, which is contrary to what is believed to be accepted in academia and which, according to critics, completely negates the recognition of transgender and nonbinary individuals. The modifications also raise questions for transgender people, those who exhibit sexual traits of either gender or both.
A study from 2021 found that there are roughly 1.2 million nonbinary or trans Americans. Nonbinary driver’s license identity categories are accepted for national IDs, including passports, in 22 states plus the District of Columbia.
The changes “threaten the security and integrity” of transgender, intersex, and nonbinary Arkansas residents, the American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas claimed on Tuesday.
According to the organization, “accurate and consistent identity documents are a basic necessity, enabling individuals to travel, secure employment, open bank accounts, and enroll in education programs,” the statement read in a statement. An ID that accurately represents a trans person’s true self is important for their health and well-being, according to the article.
The statement continues, “We strongly oppose the Governor and the Department of Finance and Administration’s (DFA) attempt to implement this repugnant and harmful policy.” It is blatant that they haven’t thought about the significant impact that these measures will have on the lives of many Arkansans.
The “X” gender designator is used in just 342 of the state’s more than 2.6 million active driver licenses, according to the DFA, along with 174 of the state’s 503,000 other state IDs. Owners may be forced to pick male or female for their paperwork after their expiration date, which will make those IDs appropriate until their expiration.
Tags: LGBTQ rights, Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ rights, and ACLU Arkansas driver’s licenses
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