Change.org - Trans lives are on the line in NC

Imagine being 18 years old and on the cusp of embracing who you are as an adult — and then realizing that state law prevents you from going to the doctor. Trans petition starter Raien is living through just that. A new bill in North Carolina would mean that he and his doctor would be criminalized for accessing life-saving medical care. Sign his petition now to protect trans youth and adults in North Carolina — don’t let them legislate hate. Protect Trans Youth in NC from Hate Laws 2,076 have signed Silent Is Violent’s petition. Let’s get to 2,500!

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My name is Raien, but you can call me Rai. I’m probably like a lot of other 17-year-old guys you know. I’m vegetarian and like to write music. I love my friends and my boyfriend. I still sleep with my favorite stuffed animals.  I’m also trans, and I started this petition because lawmakers in my home state of North Carolina are trying to pass a law to criminalize that part of my identity. I refuse to believe that they would do this if they got to know trans kids like me. Senate Bill 514 would ban gender-affirming healthcare for youth under the age of 21. It would also require school counselors and teachers to notify a student’s family if they suspect that the child is trans, which would put countless lives in danger: Requiring teachers to tell my parents of my “gender nonconformity” would’ve in the most literal sense left me either homeless or dead. My parents haven’t been supportive of me, and I haven’t had the opportunity to transition as an adolescent. Without access to gender-affirming healthcare, I was forced to experience puberty of the wrong gender, a traumatic experience no one should have to go through unwillingly. North Carolina lawmakers: Please, stop putting kids through this. SB 514 will actively shed the blood of innocent youth who deserve the right to hormone blockers, hormone replacement therapy and the possibility of gender-affirming surgeries. The national rate of suicidal ideation and attempted suicide for trans and nonbinary youth is already over 50 percent. This is a personal statistic for me, because I’m one of the many trans youth who have been hospitalized for a suicide attempt. I remember the hospital staff reminding me that I was on the cusp of freedom: I would turn 18 soon, become a legal adult, and finally be able to be whoever I want to be.  That freedom won’t be possible for me or any other trans youth if hateful bills like SB 514 continue to be passed. Instead, I’m writing this petition, pleading with the legislature to understand why I should be allowed to exist.  The most terrifying part about these bills is not even how they will affect me as a trans, black man in America. Instead, I’m extremely worried about how they will affect trans little kids – especially young trans girls – my teenage trans friends, and my own boyfriend. My boyfriend uses they/them or he/him pronouns. He is respectful, sweet and patient. He would never hurt a fly. They’re trans, too, and fortunate enough to have a supportive home where I didn’t. His mom has been there for him as he transitioned socially, which is great, and he was supposed to look into starting hormone replacement therapy in the coming months.  Bills like SB 514 would rob my boyfriend of that joy that they’ve waited so long for. Our anniversary is coming up and I’d like to spend it enjoying young love instead of grieving for our right to exist. We need people to stand with us so we’re not fighting this alone. Trans rights are HUMAN rights. Please, continue to share this campaign with your networks so that we can defeat this dehumanizing bill before it becomes law.

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