“Made in the image of God and worthy of dignity”

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President Joe Biden marked Transgender Day of Visibility on Friday, calling transgender people “made in the image of God and deserving of dignity, respect and support.”

On Transgender Visibility Day, we want you to know that we see you as you are: made in God’s image and deserving of dignity, respect and support.

We will never stop working to create a world where you don’t have to be brave just to be yourself.

He also issued a long proclamation.

Transgender Day of Visibility celebrates the joy, strength, and sheer courage of some of the bravest people I know—people who have too often had to put their jobs, relationships, and lives on the line just to to be themselves. Today, we show millions of transgender and non-binary Americans that we see them, that they belong, and that they should be treated with dignity and respect. His courage has given strength to many others, but no one should be brave just to be themselves. All Americans deserve this freedom.

Transgender Americans shape the soul of our nation: proudly serving in the military, curing deadly diseases, holding elected office, running thriving businesses, fighting for justice, raising families, and more. As children, they deserve what every child deserves: the opportunity to learn in safe and supportive schools, to develop meaningful friendships, and to live openly and honestly. As adults, they deserve the same rights enjoyed by all Americans, including equal access to health care, housing and jobs, and the opportunity to age gracefully as seniors. But today, too many transgender Americans are still denied these rights and freedoms. A wave of discriminatory state laws are targeting transgender youth, scaring families and harming children who aren’t harming anyone else. An epidemic of violence against transgender women and girls, particularly women and girls of color, has taken lives far too soon. Last year’s Q Club shooting in Colorado was another painful example of this kind of violence, a stain on our nation’s conscience.

My administration has fought to end these injustices since day one, working to ensure that transgender people and the entire LGBTQI+ community can live openly and safely. On my first day as president, I issued an executive order directing the federal government to eliminate discrimination against LGBTQI+ people and their families. We appointed a record number of openly LGBTQI+ leaders, and I was proud to rescind the ban on openly transgender people serving in the military. We’re also working to make public spaces and travel more accessible, including with more inclusive gender markers on U.S. passports. We are improving access to public services and rights such as Social Security. We are cracking down on discrimination in housing and education. And last December, I signed the Respect for Marriage Act, which ensures that all Americans can marry the person they love and accept that marriage, period.

Meanwhile, we’re also working to ease the enormous strain that discrimination, bullying and harassment can place on transgender children, more than half of whom were seriously considered suicidal in the past year. The Department of Education, for example, is helping to ensure that transgender students have equal opportunities to learn and thrive in school, and the Department of Justice is rejecting extreme laws that seek to ban gender-based health care. ‘evidence that affirms the gender.

There is much more to do. I continue to call on Congress to finally pass the Equality Act and extend long-overdue civil rights protections to all LGBTQI+ Americans to ensure they can live in safety and dignity. Together, we must also continue to challenge the hundreds of hateful state laws that have been introduced across the country, making sure that every child knows that they are made in God’s image, that they are loved, and that we stand up for them. .

America is built on the idea that all people are created equal and deserve to be treated equally throughout their lives. We’ve never lived up to it, but we haven’t shied away from it either. Today, as we celebrate transgender people, we also celebrate the fundamental right of all Americans to be themselves, moving closer to the full promise of America.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim on March 31, 2023, as transgender . Visibility Day. I call on all Americans to join us in lifting up the lives and voices of transgender people across our nation and to work to eliminate violence and discrimination against all transgender, nonconforming, and non-binary

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have given my disposition this thirtieth day of March in the year of Our Lord two thousand and twenty-three, and of the Independence of the United States of America the year two hundred and forty-seven.

JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

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