Trump Campaign Legal Advisor Misgenders Penn. Health Secretary on Purpose
On Monday morning, Jenna Ellis, the Senior Legal Advisor to the Trump Campaign and former director for the James Dobson Family Institute, purposely misgendered Pennsylvania Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine on Twitter, HRC reports:
In addition to racist and xenophobic comments directed particularly at Islam, Ellis has a history of anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric, including promoting conversion therapy and terming HIV/AIDS as God's wrath on gay and bisexual men, among other comments.
HRC President Alphonso David issued a statement in response:
"Jenna Ellis is a bigot and Dr. Levine is a patriot - plain and simple. Dr. Levine illustrates character and patriotism while Ellis cannot even define those terms.
Using a person's pronouns is a basic level of respect. Despite claims of allyship, Donald Trump, Mike Pence and their staff have gone out of their way to dehumanize and attack transgender and non-binary people simply for existing. Trump and his allies have refused to acknowledge the epidemic of violence transgender and gender non-conforming people face, attempted to strip away their access to health care, and blocked these patriotic Americans from openly serving in the military.
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Levine has steered Pennsylvania through this crisis leading efforts to reduce the spread of the virus and keep Pennsylvanians safe and healthy. Our nation has and should continue to laud the frontline workers and public servants confronting this pandemic, not attack them simply for living their truth."
Dr. Levine has faced transphobia and online harassment while she helps the statewide response to the coronavirus pandemic. The Associated Press wrote last month: "As a transgender woman, Dr. Rachel Levine has been subjected to a stream of mockery and abuse on social media and elsewhere. Every time she goes on camera to update the public and implore Pennsylvanians to wear masks, wash their hands and 'stay calm, stay alert and stay safe,' ugly comments and memes follow."
A few weeks ago, she addressed the abuse during a briefing:
"I want to emphasize that while these individuals may think they are only expressing their displeasure with me, they are in fact hurting the thousands of LGBTQ Pennsylvanians who suffer directly from these current demonstrations of harassment... Your actions perpetuate a spirit of intolerance and discrimination against LGBTQ individuals and specifically transgender individuals.
"I call on you, and all Pennsylvanians, to work towards a spirit of not just tolerance but a spirit of acceptance and welcoming towards LGBTQ individuals... We all need to foster that spirit of acceptance and welcoming to LGBTQ individuals and celebrate the wonderful diversity of our commonwealth.