Male or Female ? put X ! Now Americans can opt out by choosing “X” on their birth certificates. Nigeria

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New York City has always been a place people flock to express
themselves. Now, the city government has made it easier by getting
out of the way and giving people greater freedom to express their
gender identities.

Back in September, the City Council voted to allow New Yorkers
to change their birth certificates to reflect their gender
preferences without a doctor’s note. It also added the “X” option
for those who prefer not to be labeled as male or female.

Parents also now have the freedom to choose “X” for their
newborns.

The law brings the city in line with laws in California, Oregon,
and Washington D.C. A similar law will take effect in New
Jersey in February.

“There are plenty of New Yorkers
who don’t identify as either male or female,” City Council
Speaker Corey Johnson said. ^[1]“Gender is a spectrum for
many folks, and it’s not a fixed thing. So for New Yorkers who are
transgender, who are gender non-conforming, who are non-binary, to
have an option to better self-identify on such an important
document, their birth certificate, unlocks all sorts of things for
them.”

The new law went into effect on January 1.

The new legislation protects gender nonbinary and transgender
people from being discriminated against by making it easier to
aquire legal identification that matches their gender.

It also protects transgender and gender nonbinary people from
laws such as North Carolina’s controversial “Bathroom Bill” that
required people to use restrooms that match the biological sex
noted on their birth certificates.

Plus, it gets prevents government from collecting information
about people’s gender decisions which shouldn’t be
its business in the first place.

“For decades, New York City has
been a place where people come to express their identity, but our
institutions never afforded transgender and non-binary individuals
control over their gender on government documents,” Health
Commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot said.^[2] “By offering a
non-binary option and a less burdensome way to change one’s gender
on their birth certificate, the City is moving in the right
direction towards full equality for New Yorkers who have
historically been marginalized and ignored.”

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