Transgender Travelers Face Heightened Anxiety

Returning from a trip to Canada, I navigate Toronto’s Pearson Airport, following signs with American flags toward U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Canadian staff repeatedly check my passport, but approaching the U.S. clearance area intensifies my anxiety. The U.S. border agent gestures for me to approach and present my passport, his demeanor and silence fueling my worries about what information his system reveals, especially concerning past data. I recognize my privilege in that my physical appearance aligns with the “M” on my passport, yet I am aware the system might show a conflicting history, the “F” that was once there.

Since a presidential mandate on January 20th declared only two unchangeable sexes, male and female, American trans individuals face mounting fear and insecurity. The consequences vary based on their identification documents. As a white U.S. citizen typically perceived as male, the impact on me is less severe. I dedicate considerable time to supporting trans people of color, those with nonbinary genders now disregarded, and immigrants, who experience greater challenges. Online, I read about fears of those with an X on their documents, intersex individuals, and those dreading passport renewals fearing gender marker reversion. Some fear U.S. border crossings, others hesitate to travel for essential reasons. They imagine inhumane searches, travel restrictions, detention, or indefinite delays.

These anxieties are valid. News reports detailed a trans passenger being at airport security because their driver’s license gender marker differed from their passport. Some renewing passports received ones displaying their birth sex, while others face passport application delays.

These restrictions build upon a history of limiting trans people’s travel. Since governments began issuing IDs, trans individuals have faced challenges. In 2015, a trans woman recounted her experience of being detained and searched by TSA after a body scanner identified an “anomaly.” TSA agents have long been required to select a blue or pink button, guessing a traveler’s gender before scanning. Scanners flag unexpected physical features, like chest tissue on a trans man without top surgery, marking it on-screen and requiring a physical pat-down by an agent of the “same gender,” an often awkward process.

Driver’s licenses, frequently required, are unpredictable for trans people. Over a decade ago, I faced challenges at the DMV moving from Pennsylvania to California post-transition. The conflicting gender markers on my Pennsylvania license and California birth certificate caused system confusion. A DMV worker described bureaucratic back-and-forth between databases due to the gender mismatch. I learned that administrative tasks for trans people rarely conclude in one visit, often involving managers, calls, and repeated attempts.

However, identification documents are crucial for mobility. They are our tickets to travel. When a gender marker or name carries risks, and travel depends on a government invalidating trans existence, trans people lack equal rights. We are second-class citizens, potentially trapped if border crossing risks detention or humiliation.

Many trans individuals, particularly in states with anti-trans laws, have moved to maintain healthcare access. Some consider leaving the country entirely. In Canada, I learned about increasing inquiries from trans Americans regarding jobs, housing, and residency. Although the U.S. doesn’t qualify trans people for refugee status in Canada, interest in moving north has surged.

My father, whose Jewish parent escaped Europe, worries about the administration’s impact on me. My parents urge my partner and me to join them in Europe. I appreciate having supportive family abroad, but the underlying message is unsettling: what if we wait too long?

While mandates cannot dictate identity, they can make survival unbearable. American trans eradication may involve eroding rights, forcing us to choose between staying in a country that seeks to erase us or risking border crossing to seek refuge elsewhere.