California Legislature Celebrates 2nd Annual Transgender History Month Amidst Nationwide Attacks on Transgender People

SACRAMENTO, CA – After over 500 anti-LGBTQ bills have been introduced in state legislatures across the country with the majority targeting the human and civil rights of transgender people, the California State Assembly voted in 2023 to declare every August moving forward, Transgender History Month. Today, the California Legislature celebrates Transgender History Month with a commemoration at the California State Capitol, following a reception hosted by Assemblymember Haney and the California State Assembly LGBT Caucus. The reception will honor trans activists and community members Cal Calamia, with the Transgender Trailblazer Award, and Tracie Jada O’Brien, with the Transgender Legacy Award.

Cal Calamia is a trans marathoner, inclusivity activist, educator, community builder, and poet. He is a professor at the University of San Francisco and the author of a collection of poetry. He is committed to increasing trans visibility and uplifting queer joy, and we are honored to recognize him with the Transgender Trailblazer Award this year.

Tracie Jada O’Brien grew up in San Francisco’s Tenderloin District in the 1970s, and is now based in San Diego, California. She has persevered and worked tirelessly to become an outstanding role model within – and a staunch advocate for – the transgender community. Tracie participated in the first consultation forum for trans individuals and founded San Diego’s Transgender Day of Empowerment and the Tracie Jada O’Brien Student Scholarship Program for trans and gender-nonconforming youth. We recognize her advocacy and her incredible work within and for the transgender community with the Transgender Legacy Award.

The celebration of Transgender History Month and all those who are a part of and advocate for the trans community is increasingly important, especially at a time where a large volume of anti-trans legislation is being introduced throughout the nation. A common message spread by anti-trans legislators is that trans people are somehow new, and that being transgender is a modern invention. Scholars and historians have confirmed that gender-nonconforming and trans people exist in historic written records dating back to antiquity. California in particular has a rich and documented transgender history since the Spanish colonial era.

“Trans people have always existed,” said Assemblymember Matt Haney (D-San Francisco), the author of the bill. "In every era and in every culture they have existed. As long as there’s been the written word there has been a record of trans people. Ancient Egypt, the Romans, China, Native Americans -- the history of transgender people is there if you look for it.”

San Francisco’s Tenderloin District has been home to transgender people since the 1800s. Historians have letters written by trans women that describe their daily life living in the California city. In 2017, San Francisco designated a small part of the Tenderloin as the Transgender Cultural District, making it the first legally designated area in the world to be declared “of historic importance” to the transgender community.

“Many Californians remain unaware of the real lives and experiences of transgender people, even here in California. This lack of familiarity has been exploited by those on the right to attack the trans community,” said Transgender District founder, and current Director for the San Francisco Office of Transgender Initiatives, Honey Mahogany. “We can change that through awareness, education, and outreach, and I believe that establishing a Transgender History Month in California is one way we can do just that.”

In 2021, San Francisco became the first city in the nation to declare August as Transgender History Month followed by Santa Clara County shortly thereafter. The Compton's Cafeteria riots took place in San Francisco in August of 1966 and are largely recognized as the first LGBT civil rights uprising in the United States. August is celebrated by many transgender advocates as a turning point in transgender civil rights history.

California has consistently been at the forefront of transgender legal rights. Lucy Hicks Anderson of Oxnard – whose parents allowed her to grow up as the girl she knew herself to be in spite of her male anatomy – argued in court in the 1940s that as a woman she was entitled to her husband’s military pension.

“I believe that as Californians our strongest defense against the anti-trans agenda is just to tell the truth,” said Haney. “Let's tell the truth about transgender people’s lives, and let's lift up the history of the transgender Californians who left their mark on our great state. I am proud to celebrate Transgender History Month this year, and every August moving forward, with this community.”

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