Filed: Thursday, July 26, 2012
NCTE attorney, named among best LGBT lawyers, talks transgender issues
By Fola Akinnibi
http://www.lgbtqnation.com/2012/07/ncte-attorney-named-among-best-lgbt-lawyers-talks-transgender-issues/For the past three years, The National LGBT Bar Association has selected the best LGBT lawyers under the age of 40. This year's list includes Harper Jean Tobin, the National Center for Transgender Equality's Policy Counsel.
Tobin, who received degrees in law and social work from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland and is an alumna of Oberlin College, is a first-time recipient of the award. She took some time answer questions from LGBTQ Nation about her career, growing up transgender and policy issues of importance to her:
[...]
LGBTQ Nation: What is your biggest achievement policy wise?
Tobin: The thing that I am most proud of is our work on reforming jails, prisons and immigration detentions. We lock up far, far too many people in this country — discrimination and poverty leave many people that need to contact with these systems in the trans community, where there is a lot of abuse.
We can make a good start by working to implement the new federal standards to combat abuse that include specific protections for trans people. I'm very proud of our work on that.
