ACLU Sues Montana Over New Law Requiring Proof of Surgery Before Alteration of Birth Certificate

In April, Gov. Greg Gianforte of Montana signed a bill into law which requires people identifying as transgender to prove that they have had “gender-reassignment surgery” before their sex can be changed on official documents. On Friday, two transgender Montanans filed a lawsuit against it.

The law, SB 280, is short and to the point. “The sex of a person designated on a birth certificate may be amended only if the department receives a certified copy of an order from a court with appropriate jurisdiction indicating that the sex of the person born in Montana has been changed by surgical procedure.” According to the law, this does not apply if the sex of a person on the original birth certificate was a typo.

This law may seem wise in that it requires someone to go through a larger process in order to claim the opposite sex, but it is fundamentally flawed. The law’s flaw is that it reduces sex to certain body parts, which is reductionistic. Being human as male and female is much more than switching body parts as if we were a Mr. Potato Head. SB 280 actually ends up playing into opponents’ hands, conceding that sex is malleable – rather than it being an unchangeable reality.

Regardless, Amelia Marquez and John Doe, two transgender people, have sued with help from the ACLU, claiming the request goes too far. In their suit, Marquez v. State of Montana, they assert, “The Act’s sole purpose is to intentionally burden a transgender person’s ability to correct their birth-certificate sex designation to conform with their gender.” They also claim the requirement is “draconian.”

In making its case, the ACLU reveals the logical inconsistency of contemporary gender theory. In contesting SB 280, the ACLU argues – perhaps unintentionally – that sex and gender are the same – which goes directly against the transgender community’s long-held claim that sex and gender are two entirely separate things! It is almost as if the plaintiffs “mistakenly” claim that sex is determined by gender. The ACLU, in its desire to oppose SB 280, not only tries to shift the narrative to win its lawsuit, but it also increases the confusion in the transgender argument by opposing the very same community!

 “A person’s sex designation is determined by their gender identity, not their sex assigned at birth or their anatomy,” the suit says. “Gender-affirming surgery (…) does not ‘change’ their sex, but rather affirms it.”

So, according to the plaintiffs, gender-affirming surgery does not change someone’s sex – but rather affirms what is supposedly apparent. This puts them at odds with traditional transgender dogma which separates gender entirely from sex. It also provides us with a perfect example of how LGBT activists often contradict their previous claims in order to get what they want. However, we are glad to see that the ACLU has finally decided to completely agree with Focus on the Family that sex and gender are the same thing.

After years of the standard mantra that “sex is what’s between your legs; gender is what’s between your ears,” this admission is indeed quite surprising. This reveals that the case is firmly planted in ideology rather than consistent standards.

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