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Don’t let it Hundreds participate in a Transgender Day of Remembrance protest on Nov. 20, 2015, in West Hollywood. Hundreds gather in West Hollywood to participate in the Transgender Day of Remembrance on Nov. 20, 2015, and to protest violence against the transgender community. (Los Angeles Times) By Julián Castro, Shaun Donovan and Cyndi Lauper Sep. 8, 2020 3:05 AM * Facebook * Twitter * Show more sharing options Share (BUTTON) Close extra sharing options * Facebook * Twitter * LinkedIn * Email * Copy Link URLCopied! * Print The need for universal access to safe, stable housing may have never been more urgent. The grave health risks faced by those experiencing homelessness are only made more severe by this pandemic. Los Angeles, which has one of the highest rates of unsheltered homelessness in the country, has seen numerous COVID outbreaks among unhoused communities, and experts predict that Los Angeles may be facing an increase in homelessness of up to 16 percent due to COVID. The most marginalized among us are left particularly vulnerable to both the virus and its lasting economic impact. This is particularly true for transgender Americans, who are disproportionately afflicted by poverty and homelessness even in better years. But instead of strengthening support for the trans community, the Trump administration has taken steps to weaken it. In July, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, under the leadership of Secretary Ben Carson, proposed a dangerous new rule that would allow taxpayer-funded emergency shelters to discriminate against transgender people. By permitting shelters to serve people on the basis of “biological sex” without regard for gender identity, this rule would explicitly grant single-gender shelters permission to close their doors to transgender people experiencing homelessness. Mixed-gender shelters would be allowed to force transgender people to access services based on the gender they were assigned at birth instead of their gender identity. This places them at increased risk of gender-based violence and sexual assault. HUD’s stated mission is “to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all,” and to “build inclusive and sustainable communities free from discrimination.” This proposed rule runs directly counter to that mission. Advertisement Transgender people face devastating rates of homelessness across the United States. Nearly one-third of respondents to the 2015 U.S. Trans Survey — a major accounting of the experiences of trans Americans — reported being homeless at some point. One in eight said they had been homeless within the previous year. The survey results paint an even more dire picture for Black trans women, a group especially vulnerable to abuse, violence and HIV. More than 50 percent of respondents said they had experienced homelessness at some point in their lives, and nearly one-quarter of them reported being homeless within the previous year. If this rule is adopted, it will endanger trans people. Many of those experiencing homelessness will not seek shelter, fearing discrimination (which nearly 30% of transgender people seeking shelter have experienced) and potential violence (22% of trans people experiencing homelessness report being sexually assaulted by shelter staff or residents). Those who do seek shelter will be more likely to be turned away or harassed for who they are. In the context of COVID-19, this means that trans people experiencing homelessness will be at a heightened risk of falling ill, since shelters are many communities’ best access point to the safe, individual housing options that the CDC stresses must be made available to people experiencing unsheltered homelessness. It’s true that, in the time of COVID, shelters might not always be safer than unsheltered living. But individual housing options —such as the hotel rooms offered through California’s Project Roomkey — absolutely are. To ensure equitable access to housing, we need to ensure equitable access to emergency shelters. Advertisement Enforcing equal access to shelter is the least we can do for transgender people in our communities. They are ordinary people whose lives should never be used as a political wedge issue in cynical campaigns that try to turn neighbors against one another. Rather than thinking of new ways to make trans people’s lives more difficult, the Trump administration should be developing and executing strategies that build on the progress made under the Obama administration, which dramatically reduced homelessness for LGBTQ+ people, veterans and families. The federal government should not target the rights of trans people. Instead, as a society we should be dedicated to helping the trans community, which has historically experienced social and economic harm because of who they are. All too often, American society has failed to provide crucial and necessary support for the estimated 1.4 million transgender Americans — including one in 50 teenagers — who have lived authentically despite great obstacles. That cannot be the case once again. The Housing Saves Lives campaign is working to stop this discriminatory new proposal, which has a comment due date of September 22^nd. The HUD must uphold its own Equal Access Rule, in both letter and spirit. Julián Castro was secretary of Housing and Urban Development from 2014 to 2017. Shaun Donovan was the HUD secretary from 2009 to 2014. Cyndi Lauper is the co-founder of True Colors United. __________________________________________________________________ OpinionOp-Ed Julián Castro Shaun Donovan and Cyndi Lauper More From the Los Angeles Times * Opinion Election polling is bad for democracy. Focus on educating voters instead CLEVELAND, OHIO - SEPTEMBER 29: U.S. President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden participate in the first presidential debate at the Health Education Campus of Case Western Reserve University on September 29, 2020 in Cleveland, Ohio. This is the first of three planned debates between the two candidates in the lead up to the election on November 3. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) Opinion Election polling is bad for democracy. Focus on educating voters instead To the editor: Quinnipiac University Poll director Doug Schwartz’s review of the 2020 election surveys, and his statement that they are valuable, lead me to believe that election polls may in fact be doing a disservice to our democracy. * Opinion Litman: Can Trump give his kids a get-out-of-jail-free card? (FILES) This file photo taken on June 24, 2016 shows the children of Republican presidential-elect Donald Trump, Ivanka Trump (R), Donald Trump Jr. (C) and Eric Trump, at the official opening of his Trump Turnberry hotel and golf resort in Turnberry, Scotland. Donald Trump shook up his White House transition team Friday by appointing running mate Mike Pence as its chairman and naming a cohort of Washington insiders -- along with three of his children -- to the operation.It marked a clear shift by Trump to tap into the very establishment that he railed so strongly against during his abrasive presidential campaign that culminated Tuesday in his shock election win over Democrat Hillary Clinton. Three of Trump's grown children -- Don Jr, Eric and Ivanka -- and son-in-law Jared Kushner were also named to the team's executive committee, a move that could raise serious questions about conflicts of interest. / AFP PHOTO / OLI SCARFFOLI SCARFF/AFP/Getty Images ** OUTS - ELSENT, FPG, CM - OUTS * NM, PH, VA if sourced by CT, LA or MoD ** Opinion Litman: Can Trump give his kids a get-out-of-jail-free card? Given the breadth of the president’s constitutional power, many commentators think Trump can preemptively pardon his children. But it’s not so simple. * Opinion Letters to the Editor: Elected sheriffs would rather pander to COVID deniers than enforce the law Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes in a news conference Wednesday. Opinion Letters to the Editor: Elected sheriffs would rather pander to COVID deniers than enforce the law The Southern California sheriffs refusing to enforce coronavirus safety rules show the perils of electing law enforcement officials. * Opinion Letters to the Editor: Trump’s separation of migrant children from their parents was an atrocity WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 13: Demonstrators including U.S. Rep. Judy Chu (D-CA), Rep. John Lewis (D-GA), Rep. Al Green (D-TX), Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) and Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) participate in a moment of silence outside the headquarters of U.S. Customs and Border Protection during a protest June 13, 2018 in Washington, DC. Democratic congressional members joined actives to protest "the Trump administration's policy to separate children from their parents at the border." (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images) ** OUTS - ELSENT, FPG, CM - OUTS * NM, PH, VA if sourced by CT, LA or MoD ** Opinion Letters to the Editor: Trump’s separation of migrant children from their parents was an atrocity Even young children in stable, secure homes are traumatized when apart from their parents for too long. We need to atone for Trump’s crimes against migrant kids. Subscribers Are Reading * World & Nation Infected after 5 minutes, from 20 feet away: South Korea study shows coronavirus’ spread indoors Tables and chairs are placed with hand sanitizers and stuffed toys while maintaining social distancing in downtown Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2020. This is one of the programs for a week, for the people who are tired from COVID-19, can enjoy while maintaining social distancing and for downtown revitalization. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man) World & Nation Infected after 5 minutes, from 20 feet away: South Korea study shows coronavirus’ spread indoors A South Korean study raises concerns that six feet of social distance may not be far enough to keep people safe from the coronavirus. More Coverage COVID-19 hit Latinos hard. Now officials must build trust around vaccine in the community * California L.A. County at ‘catastrophic’ COVID-19 levels, with 13,815 new cases and more than 500,000 total MISSION HILLS, CA - DECEMBER 09: California L.A. County at ‘catastrophic’ COVID-19 levels, with 13,815 new cases and more than 500,000 total As of Thursday, there were 3,850 hospitalized COVID-19 patients in L.A. County, including 856 in ICU beds — both records. More Coverage Tracking the coronavirus in California Noticias en español * California L.A. County coronavirus surges hit upscale suburbs as well as the inner city SAN FERNANDO, CA - DECEMBER 01: People wait in line at a walk-up Covid-19 testing site at San Fernando Recreation Park Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020 in San Fernando, CA. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) California L.A. County coronavirus surges hit upscale suburbs as well as the inner city COVID-19 spikes spill into dozens of L.A. County communities in the San Gabriel Valley, South Bay, the Westside and central L.A. More Coverage Tracking the coronavirus in California Noticias en español * Business Get ready for another roaring ’20s, UCLA economic forecast predicts LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 15: Travelers in Los Angeles International Airport's Terminal 5 on Thursday, Oct. 15, 2020 in Honolulu, CA. Amid the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, the State of Hawaii is trying to restart its tourism economy; October 15 was the start of a new traveler testing program, with thousands of people expected to arrive to the state. Business Get ready for another roaring ’20s, UCLA economic forecast predicts After “a gloomy COVID winter,” widespread vaccination will bring years of robust growth to California’s economy, the UCLA Anderson forecast says. * Lifestyle The L.A. Times holiday gift guide Lead art gif for 2020 gift guide lists Lifestyle The L.A. Times holiday gift guide Welcome to our comprehensive gift guide for the 2020 holiday season. Advertisement Latest Opinion * Opinion Letters to the Editor: Dianne Feinstein had a terrible week. Maybe readers can cheer her up Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and Democratic members of the Senate Judiciary Committee hold a news conference after boycotting the vote by the Republican-led panel to advance the nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to sit on the Supreme Court, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Opinion Letters to the Editor: Dianne Feinstein had a terrible week. Maybe readers can cheer her up California’s senior senator hasn’t been a favorite of the left for much of her career, but readers have often come to her defense. * Opinion Opinion: Texas’ absurd lawsuit to nullify election results in four other states ends with a whimper, not a bang The U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington. Opinion Opinion: Texas’ absurd lawsuit to nullify election results in four other states ends with a whimper, not a bang The Supreme Court spares Texas a deserved scolding for wasting its time. * Opinion Opinion: GOP support for a frivolous lawsuit shows how Trump has corrupted the party Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro addresses a reporter's question alongside Chief Deputy Attorney General Laurie Malone at a news conference Thursday, May 10, 2018, in Philadelphia. Shapiro announced that Christann Shyvin Gainey, a nurse, was charged Thursday, in the death of the father of H.R. McMaster, President Donald Trump's former national security adviser, after authorities said she failed to give him a series of neurological exams following his fall at a Philadelphia senior care facility. Gainey was charged with involuntary manslaughter, neglect and records tampering in the death of H.R. McMaster Sr. (AP Photo/Jacqueline Larma) Opinion Opinion: GOP support for a frivolous lawsuit shows how Trump has corrupted the party It’s outrageous that 126 members of Congress support a Texas lawsuit — backed by Trump — to overturn the election results in four states won by Biden. * Opinion Op-Ed: Forget compromise. The GOP isn’t likely to accept Biden — ever Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, speaks during a news conference following a weekly meeting with the Senate Republican caucus, Tuesday, Dec. 8. 2020 at the Capitol in Washington. Americans waiting for Republicans in Congress to acknowledge Joe Biden as the president-elect may have to keep waiting until January as GOP leaders stick with President Donald Trump’s litany of legal challenges and unproven claims of fraud. (Sarah Silbiger/Pool via AP) Opinion Op-Ed: Forget compromise. The GOP isn’t likely to accept Biden — ever Republicans march in lock-step and see the world through a lens of villains and heroes — a posture that’s an advantage in political warfare. * Opinion Letters to the Editor: GOP politicians who voted for Trump don’t have a chance in California San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer addresses reporters during a news conference in which he addressed the city's and county's interest in finding a new home for the Chargers. Opinion Letters to the Editor: GOP politicians who voted for Trump don’t have a chance in California San Diego’s mayor may run for governor, but he ruined his chances by voting for President Trump in 2020. 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