After more than a year of discussion and consideration, Equality Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) announced that they have successfully reached agreement on a change in gender marker policy, a move aimed at protecting the dignity and safety of transgender Pennsylvanians.  "Gender Markers" refer to the manner in which individuals present themselves on official documentation such as a driver’s license or other state-issued ID.  In recent years, many states including Massachusetts, New Jersey, Colorado, Ohio, and the District of Columbia have updated their policies to ensure transgender people can obtain accurate driver's licenses.

     The newly adopted policy means that transgender citizens of Pennsylvania will be permitted to change the designated gender on their driver's license when they are living full-time in their new gender and it can be verified by a licensed medical or psychological caregiver.  Under previous policy, transgender individuals wishing to be represented on their driver’s license as their presenting gender were forced to prove that sexual reassignment surgery had occurred. 

     “As an organization that works to promote the health and wellness of LGBT individuals, Mazzoni Center is extremely pleased about the change in policy at PennDOT, which will have a significant impact on the daily lives of many transgender individuals in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” said Mazzoni Center Director of Legal Services Amara S. Chaudhry, Esq, adding:  “many people do not realize the daily difficulties, harassment, and even physical violence that members of the transgender community face, and having an appropriate state-issued identification can go a long way toward avoiding potential conflict and protecting them from harm.” 

     Chaudhry played an important role in opening the dialogue with PennDOT in 2009, when as legal director at Equality Advocates Pennsylvania she co-authored a series of letters to the agency with legal intern Natalie Hrubos.  In January of this year Equality Advocates Pennsylvania’s legal department officially became a program of Mazzoni Center, with Chaudhry as director of legal services, while Equality Pennsylvania, operating under its new name, has continued to focus on education, public policy and advocacy for LGBT Pennsylvanians. 

     Equality Pennsylvania successfully partnered with transgender advocates from Pennsylvania, the National Center for Transgender Equality and the Gay and Lesbian Taskforce for advice and support while working toward the new policy with PennDOT.   "I want to applaud the Department of Transportation for the careful and intelligent way they have handled this discussion," remarked Equality Pennsylvania Executive Director, Ted Martin.  "From the very beginning, they recognized what the American Psychological Association, over 25 other states and the Department of Homeland Security has been realizing all along; that this just makes sense and is the right thing to do. This simple change in policy will make lives better and that's really the most important point in all this."  

     Chaudhry expressed her gratitude to colleagues at Equality Pennsylvania for their dedication and persistence on the issue, and to PennDOT for their willingness to develop a more sensitive and inclusive policy for citizens of Pennsylvania.  “I sincerely hope this is the beginning of a new trend which will increasingly recognize an individual’s right to self-determination,” she said.  “We’re certainly closer to that goal with this new form.”