‘We’ve got your back,’ Kenney tells LGBTQ community

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 Transgender activist Deja Lynn Alvarez says she's happy to live in Philadelphia. (Tom MacDonald/WHYY)

Transgender activist Deja Lynn Alvarez says she's happy to live in Philadelphia. (Tom MacDonald/WHYY)

Following the Trump administration’s withdrawing Obama-era protections for transgender students,  Philadelphia officials are highlighting a city law that’s still very much on the books.  

Mayor Jim Kenney used a City Hall event to tout the Philadelphia law mandating that one-person, public bathrooms be gender-neutral.

President Donald Trump’s directive released last week reversed federal guidance on allowing transgender students to select bathrooms and locker rooms that correspond with their gender “is clearing saying they do not have our kids backs,” Kenney said. “I want every student and every parent to know that the city of Philadelphia will continue to stand with out students, even if the federal government refuses to.”

Transgender activist Deja Lynn Alvarez says she cannot understand why Washington rolled back that guidance.

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“Three transgender women of color were murdered in Louisiana in a 48-hour period, but people are worried about where I go to the bathroom.  I’m so lucky to live in Philadelphia with progressive leadership.”

While the guidance from Washington was rescinded, nothing prohibits states or cities from passing their own laws to safeguard transgender rights.

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