FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, 28 August 2024
WICHITA FALLS PASTOR DEMANDS PUBLIC EMPLOYEES FOLLOW TEXAS ADMINISTRATIVE CODE
Rev. Mel Martinez, pastor of Wichita Falls Metropolitan Community Church, is calling for the immediate reversal of an anti-trans policy which violates the Texas Administrative Code.
On Aug. 20, Sheri Gipson, chief of the Texas Driver License Division, sent an edict to state employees regarding gender markers on public documents that is in clear violation of the Texas Administrative Code. “Effective immediately, … the Department will not accept court orders or amended birth certificates issued that change the sex when it differs from documentation already on file,” the chief wrote. “For current DL/ID holders, the sex established at the time of original application and listed in the driver record will not be changed unless there was a clerical error."
This policy change is in direct opposition to the Texas Administrative Code concerning official secondary identification documents for obtaining and updating a State of Texas Drivers License. Gipson has simply ordered employees of the state to ignore the law.
“Gipson’s behavior is indicative of a rhetoric often assigned to those of us working WITH the legislative process to make change,” Martinez said. “It is not the minoritized who ignore law, but, apparently, those who have flourished in taxpayer-funded power.” The Texas Administrative Code outlines the required secondary documents of identification to include only two items: an original or certified Birth Certificate or Court Order.¹
“Denying accurate information on one’s license is akin to illegally and intentionally excluding an entire community of citizens from a basic need of modern life: proof of identification,” Martinez said. “These efforts are done with spite and ignorance of the real danger inflicted upon transgender and gender variant people.”
This policy change is a continuation of the onslaught against people with diverse experiences of gender.
"This is not a battle for a select few; it is a fight for the very fabric of our democracy," Martinez said. "It's imperative that all legislators, regardless of their personal beliefs, join us in advocating for a Texas where everyone is valued and protected under the law."
Media contact: Rev. Mel Martinez, info@wfmcc.org, (940) 322-4100
1. Title 31, Part 1, Chapter 15, Subchapter B, Rule §15.24, Section 2
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