[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 65 (Wednesday, April 3, 2024)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 22901-22902]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-07197]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 89 , No. 65 / Wednesday, April 3, 2024 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 22901]]


                Proclamation 10724 of March 29, 2024

                
Transgender Day of Visibility, 2024

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                On Transgender Day of Visibility, we honor the 
                extraordinary courage and contributions of transgender 
                Americans and reaffirm our Nation's commitment to 
                forming a more perfect Union--where all people are 
                created equal and treated equally throughout their 
                lives.

                I am proud that my Administration has stood for justice 
                from the start, working to ensure that the LGBTQI+ 
                community can live openly, in safety, with dignity and 
                respect. I am proud to have appointed transgender 
                leaders to my Administration and to have ended the ban 
                on transgender Americans serving openly in our 
                military. I am proud to have signed historic Executive 
                Orders that strengthen civil rights protections in 
                housing, employment, health care, education, the 
                justice system, and more. I am proud to have signed the 
                Respect for Marriage Act into law, ensuring that every 
                American can marry the person they love.

                Transgender Americans are part of the fabric of our 
                Nation. Whether serving their communities or in the 
                military, raising families or running businesses, they 
                help America thrive. They deserve, and are entitled to, 
                the same rights and freedoms as every other American, 
                including the most fundamental freedom to be their true 
                selves. But extremists are proposing hundreds of 
                hateful laws that target and terrify transgender kids 
                and their families--silencing teachers; banning books; 
                and even threatening parents, doctors, and nurses with 
                prison for helping parents get care for their children. 
                These bills attack our most basic American values: the 
                freedom to be yourself, the freedom to make your own 
                health care decisions, and even the right to raise your 
                own child. It is no surprise that the bullying and 
                discrimination that transgender Americans face is 
                worsening our Nation's mental health crisis, leading 
                half of transgender youth to consider suicide in the 
                past year. At the same time, an epidemic of violence 
                against transgender women and girls, especially women 
                and girls of color, continues to take too many lives. 
                Let me be clear: All of these attacks are un-American 
                and must end. No one should have to be brave just to be 
                themselves.

                At the same time, my Administration is working to stop 
                the bullying and harassment of transgender children and 
                their families. The Department of Justice has taken 
                action to push back against extreme and un-American 
                State laws targeting transgender youth and their 
                families and the Department of Justice is partnering 
                with law enforcement and community groups to combat 
                hate and violence. My Administration is also providing 
                dedicated emergency mental health support through our 
                nationwide suicide and crisis lifeline--any LGBTQI+ 
                young person in need can call ``988'' and press ``3'' 
                to speak with a counselor trained to support them. We 
                are making public services more accessible for 
                transgender Americans, including with more inclusive 
                passports and easier access to Social Security 
                benefits. There is much more to do. I continue to call 
                on the Congress to pass the Equality Act, to codify 
                civil rights protections for all LGBTQI+ Americans.

                Today, we send a message to all transgender Americans: 
                You are loved. You are heard. You are understood. You 
                belong. You are America, and my entire Administration 
                and I have your back.

[[Page 22902]]

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of 
                the United States of America, by virtue of the 
                authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws 
                of the United States, do hereby proclaim March 31, 
                2024, as Transgender Day of Visibility. I call upon all 
                Americans to join us in lifting up the lives and voices 
                of transgender people throughout our Nation and to work 
                toward eliminating violence and discrimination based on 
                gender identity.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                twenty-ninth day of March, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand twenty-four, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and forty-
                eighth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2024-07197
Filed 4-2-24; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3395-F4-P