Making Jails Safer for Transgender Mainers

[Shana A]

 Making Jails Safer for Transgender Mainers

http://www.aclu.org/blog/lgbt-rights/making-jails-safer-transgender-mainers

Most Americans can say that they've never had the pleasure of spending time in jail or prison. And we don't really expect jails or prisons to be posh places, but we do expect them to keep those who end up there safe. Transgender Americans, on the other hand, face a different reality. Even a short jail experience, if you're transgender, can be fraught with indignities, hostility, even violence or sexual assault.

The U.S. Supreme Court made it clear in Farmer v. Brennan that prison administrators who turn a blind eye to the sexual assault of transgender prisoners violate the Constitution. What the Court didn't address was exactly how prisons and jails should go about keeping transgender prisoners safe.