The Brief

- A federal court has blocked the Trump administration from enforcing a passport policy that would have limited gender marker changes and banned the use of the "X" designation commonly used by nonbinary Americans.

The decision is a win for LGBTQ+ advocates who argued the policy was discriminatory and out of step with medical standards.

The policy stemmed from a January executive order signed by former President Donald Trump, which redefined gender based on a strict male-female binary and rejected the validity of gender transition.

It marked a significant shift from policies under President Joe Biden, which recognized broader gender identities.

Why was the Trump passport policy blocked?

U.S. District Judge Julia Kobick, appointed by Biden, sided with the ACLU’s motion for a preliminary injunction.

She found that the administration’s actions likely violated the constitutional rights of transgender and nonbinary individuals. Kobick wrote that the executive order and passport rule discriminate based on sex and must be held to "intermediate scrutiny," a standard the government failed to meet.

The ACLU filed the suit on behalf of five transgender Americans and two nonbinary plaintiffs, arguing that the new rules would effectively deny accurate identity documents to a significant segment of the population.

"We all have a right to accurate identity documents, and this policy invites harassment, discrimination, and violence against transgender Americans who can no longer obtain or renew a passport that matches who they are," ACLU attorney Sruti Swaminathan told the Associated Press.

The Trump administration defended the policy by citing the president’s discretion in setting passport standards and said it did not violate constitutional protections. Officials argued plaintiffs were still able to travel internationally even without updated gender markers.

The case will now proceed through the courts, with the injunction keeping the existing passport policies in place for now. Advocates say the ruling helps safeguard access to identity documents during a pivotal time for transgender rights, especially amid broader legal and political battles over gender identity in the US.