Original Blog Entry: Transgendered couple gets OK to marry after 14-month gender discrimination battle

truesee — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 21:50:21 GMT

Transgendered couple gets OK to marry after 14-month gender discrimination battle

Larry Mcshane

DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Tuesday, March 8th 2011, 11:53 AM

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After protracted dispute over gender discrimination, a transgendered couple is OK to marry.

A transgendered Bronx couple was given the go ahead to wed this week by the city clerk's office, ending a 14-month battle for their right to marry.

The couple - initially questioned over their appearance - was cleared to get hitched in a two-page directive sent out Monday by the city clerk.

This is the first time it's been written down in this form, to ensure this type of discrimination doesn't happen again, said Michael Silverman of the Transgender Legal Defense Education Fund.

The case involved a Bronx couple in a relationship for more than a decade. One of the two was a female to male transgender, while the other was a male to female, Silverman said.

The anonymous couple - identified only as John and Jane - went to get a marriage license in December 2009. Both showed proper ID, but a worker in the City Clerk's Bronx office asked to see their birth certificates - a move that is illegal and unconstitutional, according to Silverman.

The clerk made the request because the pair didn't look like the sexes listed on their ID cards.

It's a very common situation for the transgendered, Silverman said. They may not have updated their identification.

The letter instructed all employees of the clerk's office to treat applicants with dignity and respect and stressed that transgendered applicants need only produce the same ID as any other person.

Gender stereotypes or preconceived notions related to gender expression - including an applicant's physical appearance, dress behavior or name - may not be considered when deciding whether to issue a marriage license, wrote City Clerk Michael McSweeney.

The couple has yet to pick up their marriage license, but plans to do so and get married in a private ceremony in the near future, Silverman said.

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