Ethan Lowe testifies on TGNC task force and gender-aligned housing denials
Ethan Lowe of the Legal Aid Society and the TGNC-NBI task force says conditions remain urgent for trans and gender nonconforming people in DOC custody. He supports Intro 133 with advocate amendments and urges a hearing on Intro 134 for enforceable gender-aligned housing protections.
Good morning.
My name is Ethan Lowe, and I am a staff attorney in the LGBTQ Law and Policy Unit at the Legal Aid Society and a member of the New York City Task Force on Issues Faced by TGNC and BI People.
That is transgender, gender nonconforming, nonbinary, and intersex people in DOC custody.
The task force was created in 2019 following the death of Lailene Polanco, a transgender woman who died on Rikers Island.
Her death brought attention to the dangerous conditions that TGNC and BI New Yorkers have long reported experiencing in DOC custody, including unsafe housing placements and high rates of violence and harassment.
The task force was established to examine these conditions and recommend changes to DOC policies and practices.
Those conditions remain urgent today.
TG and CNBI people, particularly transgender women and trans feminine people, continue to be involuntarily placed in men's facilities where they face heightened risk of physical and sexual violence and the daily psychological harm of being confined in a setting that denies their identity.
Those seeking safer gender-aligned housing must navigate an opaque request process, and DOC's own Fiscal 26 data show that approximately half of gender-aligned housing transfer requests are denied.
Each denial can leave a person in a facility where they face harassment, violence, isolation, or pressure to conceal their identity simply to survive.
That is why the task force work remains necessary.
It creates a forum where directly impacted people, advocates, and government agencies can identify systemic failures and press for solutions.
We support Intro 133 to extend the task force because the
City must continue that work.
The renewal must come with structural changes needed for the task force to function effectively.
We urge the council to adopt the amendments proposed by the advocates of the task force and pass Intro 133 as amended.
We also urge that the city hears Intro 134, which is a bill to establish enforceable protections around gender-aligned housing.
Intro 133 extends an important oversight body, but the task force recommendation can only go so far if they're not adopted by DOC.
Intro 134 would directly change policy affecting TGNC and BI people in DOC custody.
Thank you.
Thank you.