Transgender Justice

Transgender Justice

Our Work

Basic Rights Oregon’s Trans Justice program works to win policies that increase the safety and wellbeing of transgender Oregonians.  We work to increase the safety of trans people within the criminal justice system and we conduct education to fully enforce Oregon’s ban on discrimination.  Our primary campaign aims to increase access to health care for trans Oregonians. 

Why We Do This Work

Basic Rights Oregon is committed to advancing equality for transgender Oregonians. Within the LGBT rights movement, transgender people have been historically excluded, and transgender members of our community face unique barriers to meeting basic needs like housing, employment, health care and more.  At Basic Rights Oregon, we ultimately work towards an Oregon which affirms the lives and experiences of transgender people, an Oregon where everyone has the basic health care they need.

Who We Are

This important work is led by the Trans Justice Working Group – a team of trans and genderqueer-identified leaders from across the state who work with the trans justice staff to implement key strategies.  In 2009, the Trans Justice Working Group led a process to solicit community input, select a campaign, and design and implement key strategies.   Three priorities rose to the top: increasing access to health care, increasing safety within the criminal justice system and continuing our work to end discrimination against trans Oregonians. 

What the Trans Justice Program Does

• Organizes to make Oregon one of the first states to ban insurance discrimination against transgender communities by working with employers, cities, counties and statewide decision makers to remove insurance exclusions that keep transgender people from receiving the basic health care they need.
• Empowers trans Oregonians and engages the leadership of trans community leaders in our campaign to end insurance discrimination.
• Works to establish and strengthen policies to ensure the health and safety of transgender Oregonians in jails and prisons.
• Creates resources and conducts education to ensure that the Oregon Equality Act, which bans discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression, is fully enforced.