Recently, The New York Times leaked information that the Trump administration is trying to redefine the way the word "sex" was seen under the eyes of the law. There is a lot of fear that the word "sex" would pertain to specifically the biological body parts that people are born with, ignoring entirely that there are men and women in this country who identify as either men, women or otherwise who are not cisgender. With this alteration to the definition, many attacks against trans rights will become legitimate threats in that the government may no longer recognize these people as who they are.

Many transgender people face discrimination in the workplace, which is most of the time able to be fought against and rectified under the grounds of sex discrimination. However, if the Trump Administration is successful in changing the way "sex" is perceived under the eyes of the law, many transgender people will begin to fear for their rights, even more so than they already are.

According to an article by ABC News, the memo that was leaked by The New York Times was directed towards the Department of Education, Department of Justice, Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Labor. If this new definition goes into the Department of Education, it could really affect the lives and mental health of children who are struggling with their identity and their bodies, making it 10x worse than it already is for trans kids and could lead to the increase in suicidal thoughts for trans kids. If this redefining makes its way into the Department of Justice, transgender people who commit crimes might be put into, for example, male facilities for someone who identifies as female.

This can lead to a serious threat to safety for trans people. If this new definition makes its way into the Department of Health and Human Services, transgender people may not be able to get the proper care that they require. And finally, if this new definition is applied to the Department of Labor, it can lead to a lot of unlawful discrimination against trans people which would no longer be seen as illegal.

Transgender Rights seem to be the ones that are ignored often by the government, but especially by society itself. We as a people need to do better. Even if one doesn't understand the struggles of what it means to be trans, we should be able to empathize and fight for the right for transgender people to live without fear of persecution.

Transgender rights are human rights. Never forget that. So stop ignoring, and start talking.