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Attorney General William Tong, as part of a coalition of 18 attorneys general, filed an amicus brief supporting a legal challenge to President Trump’s executive orders targeting diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility initiatives and programs that support transgender individuals.
Attorney General Tong and the coalition filed their brief in San Francisco AIDS Foundation v. Trump before the United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.
It seems Tong and the coalition are upset about the provisions in the executive orders that direct agencies to terminate federal funding for “equity-related” grants and grants that promote “gender ideology.”
The plaintiffs in the case argue that the funding provisions "impose illegal burdens on organizations that provide critical services to LGBTQ communities – many specifically supporting transgender individuals."
“Providing healthcare and services to people who are trans does not promote any ideology. But defunding organizations because they provide healthcare and services to transgender people does—a dark and discriminatory ideology. This doesn’t stop with LGBTQ services. It’s the same kind of hateful and unlawful litmus test that Trump applies to defund healthcare, domestic violence shelters, cancer research, food and energy assistance, and disaster relief to any entity, state or person he deems not sufficiently MAGA. All people deserve healthcare and support, regardless of how they identify and who they love, and we cannot let his hate divide us. It’s that simple,” said Attorney General Tong.
In their brief, the attorneys general argue that diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility programs are "lawful, beneficial and ensure compliance with federal civil rights statutes." The coalition also explains how the challenged provisions in the executive orders "harm their states, residents and businesses by denying them the many valuable benefits associated with workplaces, schools and communities that have adopted practices related to diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility."
Additionally, the attorneys general assert that the "funding provisions related to 'gender ideology' unlawfully terminate grants and other awards that support critical services and lifesaving health care for transgender individuals" and that the directive harms "organizations that rely on this funding" and the "health and well-being of transgender residents who rely on these services and who are already among the most vulnerable members of our society."
A lower court granted the plaintiffs a preliminary injunction, but the administration appealed. The attorneys general are urging the appeals court to uphold the injunction.
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell co-led the coalition. Attorneys General Raoul, Bonta, Campbell and Tong were joined in filing the brief by the attorneys general of Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.
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