A transgender youth who alleged pervasive discrimination and harassment in a local youth-detention center settled her complaint last week.
The settlement in the case, which was filed in 2009 with the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations against the Youth Study Center and the city’s Department of Human Services, among other parties, will result in a number of policy changes at YSC to protect trans youth.
“I am happy that the case is settled,” said L.P., the complainant, who is now 18. “I hope that these changes will ensure that no other young transgender person experiences the physical and emotional abuse that I experienced.”
Per the settlement, YSC will broaden its nondiscrimination statements to include protections for gender identity and will permit trans youth to live in single rooms in units that correspond to their gender identity. YSC staff will be required to use correct pronouns and chosen names for trans youth, regardless of whether the name change has become legal, and will also provide clothing and grooming options that correspond to the youth’s gender identity.
The agreement also stipulates that the decision to allow transgender teens to undergo hormone therapy will reside solely with the youth’s health-care providers and not YSC or DHS staff, an issue that arose during L.P.’s stay at the center.
In foster care since age 11, L.P. resided at YSC from November 2007-February 2009.
In 2008, L.P. was evaluated by an adolescent specialist at Mazzoni Center, who determined she met the criteria for gender-identity disorder, and a family-court judge later ordered DHS to provide her with medical treatment for GID, including hormone therapy, and to respect her gender identity.
However, the teen was denied GID treatment by YSC staff, who would not acknowledge that she identified as female.
“She was depressed and felt isolated most of the time,” said Flor Bermudez, Lambda Legal’s Youth in Out-of-Home Care staff attorney. “She felt a sense of hopelessness because she tried to access help and, even though she had a court order, the staff was still not complying and respecting her gender identity.”
According to L.P., staff members referred to her by her male name and male pronouns, and would not permit her to wear female undergarments or have her hair relaxed, allowances made for other female residents. L.P. was required to use male restroom facilities and sleep in quarters with male residents.
She said she was ridiculed by the other residents on a daily basis for her gender identity, called “faggot” and a “wannabe girl,” abuse that at times became physical. She contends that the staff did nothing to prevent the attacks and did not reprimand the offenders, and that one staffer even told her she was not a female and would continue to be treated like a male until she had sexual-reassignment surgery.
As part of the settlement, DHS will provide LGBT sensitivity training to all YSC staff, and L.P. will also receive an undisclosed cash settlement from the city.
Bermudez said her client was satisfied with the settlement, the provisions of which she noted could serve as a model for other youth-serving agencies.
“The policy is quite comprehensive — it covers the issues of sleeping placement to language and preferred pronouns and allows for decisions on hormone treatment to fall completely in the hands of medical professionals, which is where it should be. It’s a big step in recognizing the rights of transgender young people.”
Jen Colletta can be reached at [email protected].
