Letter from the Board

The evening after the Supreme Court’s disastrous decision in United States v. Skrmetti, I gathered with about 100 other NTBA community members over Zoom. Alexander Chen, the Founding Director of the LGBTQ+ Advocacy Clinic at Harvard Law School and one of NTBA’s founders, was set to give remarks and answer questions in a rapid response event that I and others from the NTBA board had organized.

Alex and I had been emailing back and forth before each release of Supreme Court decisions for weeks waiting for the hammer to fall, but finally reading the decision was no relief. I couldn’t help but think of the young trans people I had litigated on behalf of against Texas’s ban on gender-affirming care—the ones who fled their homes and the ones who stayed. My thoughts kept coming back to them throughout the day as I sprung into response mode in my job at Transgender Law Center.

So it was with a heavy heart that I welcomed the dozens of NTBA members and friends to our debrief that evening. Alex, thankfully, brought more energy, diving into an analysis of the decision and contextualization of this moment that managed to break down the complex issues and their undercurrents in a way that lawyers learned something from, and non-lawyers could understand. Here’s a link to his talk, which we’ll take down in about three months, if you missed it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QlL9xPD43Y

Questions and comments began popping up almost immediately in the chat box, with audience members addressing both Alex and each other. It became much more dynamic than other webinars I’ve attended. Alex showed his Zoom-era professor skills, going back and forth between the chat, his talk, and questions from people coming off of mute. We discussed not only the decision, but how to respond to it within the legal system and beyond it. We were lucky to have not just lawyers in the Zoom room, but health care providers, activists, and many other community members who offered valuable context and perspectives. Though it was scheduled to be an hour-long event, Alex was still deep into Q&A when we hit the hour mark, and he offered to stay longer. We ended up going over two hours, until after 11 pm on the East Coast, yet somehow, I was less tired at the end than I had been when we started.

My favorite moment came near the end when Alex called out a particular attendee, Jamison Green. Alex explained that he had read Jamison’s book, “Becoming a Visible Man,” years ago when he was first coming to understand his own identity, and that he later had the chance to meet Jamison in person as he was beginning his career as a civil rights lawyer. Alex thanked Jamison, and Jamison told Alex how proud he was of him. This moment of intergenerational connection, a full circle for Alex, was deeply moving. To me, it was a reminder of our community’s insistence on survival—that no matter what the courts say, we will continue on, case after case, year after year, decade after decade. Last Wednesday was a terrible day for our community, but I am glad that I was able to at least end it surrounded by community, reminded of the brilliance and resilience we hold collectively.

Sending care,

Milo Inglehart
Junta Directiva de la NTBA