Abbott, echoing Trump, demands State agencies adopt binary sex system ...0

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott sent a letter to state agencies Thursday, in which he said that Texas would follow President Donald Trump's executive order declaring a sex binary.

"This office has consistently reiterated a simple truth: The State of Texas recognizes only two sexes," Abbott wrote. "[Trump's order] confirms what my office has repeatedly stressed before."

Abbott's letter can be read below. This article continues after.

Trump's Jan. 20 executive order provided its own definition for the sexes:

However, neither the U.S. or Texas have a legal definition of male or female. Both the Texas Legislature and U.S. Congress have pending legislation to define the two sexes as immutable characteristics.

What does it mean for Texans?

Abbott ended the letter by ordering state agencies to follow state and federal laws. Currently, state and federal law do not prohibit transgender people from using restrooms, updating their ID or dressing how they want to dress.

KXAN has asked the Governor's Office about how the order will impact Texans' state-issued ID, name changes, employment and freedom of expression.

In his letter, Abbott also called out Travis County courts for their issuance of sex marker changes.

"These instructions were not grounded in any recognized state cause of action, were issued in proceedings where no agency was a party, and contradicted both statutory law and biological reality," he wrote.

While Texas law hasn't allowed for sex marker changes on state-issued IDs, it does allow for name changes. Name change filings in Texas do not require a state agency to be a party to proceedings, nor does it restrict what name a person can choose.

As for employment, the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Bostock still stands -- bias due to sexual orientation or gender expression is discrimination on the basis of sex. That ruling extended Title VII protections under the Civil Rights Act to cover LGBTQ+ status.

As of 4 p.m. Friday, the Governor's Office has not yet replied to KXAN's questions about the letter.

ACLU, TENT respond to letter

The ACLU of Texas responded to Abbott's letter in a statement to KXAN Friday:

“To state that there are only two sexes or two genders does not make it true," said the civil rights group. "Intersex people and transgender people respectively disprove these claims simply by existing, and we deserve protection from discrimination."

Landon Richie, a policy coordinator with the Transgender Education Network of Texas (TENT), said that the letter was "riddled with disinformation and blatant lies."

"It's clear that the new administration and Texas leadership are on the same page and working in lockstep to achieve their goal, their desire to remove trans people from public life through force," he said. "By releasing this letter, Governor Abbott is intentionally inciting fear and hoping to cause confusion, chaos, concern and fear among people. The sheer volume of attack is intended to elicit those very reactions and to make everything very unstable and very confusing."

Richie added that the letter, and the executive order it mimics, are "wish lists" that don't immediately change the rules for transgender people. But restrictions on the freedoms of trans Texans will be coming.

"The Texas government and this new administration have defined a clear mission to enforce discrimination and endorse whatever violence may follow," he said. "We are being used as scapegoats to distract everybody else from the real, real issues impacting them...the way that our government is actively making people's lives worse, instead of taking steps to improve people's quality of life."

State repression, violence and threats to transgender people aren't anything new, Richie noted. But he wants trans people in Texas to remember that gender-expansive people have always existed beyond what a bureaucracy can hold and that legal protection is "relatively new."

"We are no stranger to this in Texas, especially, and we come from a long and rich history of Trans-cestors who were known for their unapologetic fight and we follow in that struggle," he said. "As we have in the past, we will outlive transphobia."

"Transgender and intersex people have always existed and always will. Our incredible history shows that no press release, law, or other attempt to render us invisible can change that," ALCU-Texas said. "Trans and intersex people of all ages and races deserve a Texas that will not only recognize us, but protect, welcome, and support us."

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