Friend –

Among the joy, celebrations, and remembrances of Pride month, we also all witnessed the cavalcade of attacks against transgender people happening nationwide.

All month, these anti-trans assaults continued across the states. So all month long, the ACLU – and our affiliates in all 50 states, D.C., and Puerto Rico – continued our fight against them.

And although Pride is now over, the work does not stop. We just filed our two most recent lawsuits to protect trans rights in the states. Here's what to know about the cases so far:

• First, we're suing the state of Georgia, asserting that its ban on gender-affirming surgeries is a violation of the U.S. Constitution, the Affordable Care Act, and the Medicaid Act. We and the ACLU of Georgia filed this lawsuit on behalf of our clients, Shon and Gwendolyn, two Black trans women who have been denied access to gender-affirming care under Georgia Medicaid. Georgia is one of 10 states that bans transgender adults from receiving gender-affirming care under Medicaid.
• Second, we're challenging a state law in Tennessee, which forces business owners who have trans-inclusive restrooms to post this stigmatizing government-prescribed warning sign: "Notice: This facility maintains a policy of allowing the use of restrooms by either biological sex, regardless of the designation on the restroom." This law is not only harmful to trans people who are already subjected to violence and harassment in restrooms – it's a violation of the First Amendment. That's why the ACLU, along with the ACLU of Tennessee, has filed this lawsuit in federal court on behalf of two business owners, Kye Sayers and Bob Bernstein, to block it.

ACLU Supporter, these are only two of many more lawsuits soon-to-come in this crucial work. And even amid the continuous attacks in the states right now, we also saw hope this week:

The Supreme Court chose not to challenge our client Gavin Grimm's win in lower courts – in his years-long lawsuit over the right to use the restroom in his school as a transgender student.

It's victories like this that we're fighting toward – until all trans and non-binary people are able to live openly, authentically, and without the fear of discrimination. So thank you for being with us in this and all our efforts to protect people's rights.

Onward,

The ACLU Team