Documents Should Tell the Truth. Mine Finally Does.

On July 30, 2025, a small blue book arrived in the mail.

I held my updated passport in my hands, and for the first time, it told the truth about my gender. It said: male. And suddenly, something in me exhaled.

The last time I held this document, back in January, I opened it with hope. That hope drained out of me in an instant. Printed in cold, indifferent ink was the word female. A lie dressed as fact, a word that no longer belonged to me.

And even though I had already legally changed my gender, seeing that word hit like lightning. What I didn’t know then was that my application had landed just after a cruel, calculated policy had taken effect: a directive from the Trump administration that tied gender markers to birth assignments, not to truth. It was a policy designed to erase people like me. That moment cracked me open. I couldn’t speak about it, not for a week, not even to the woman I love most in this world. I folded into silence. I folded into alcohol to cope. By April, I was in rehab, reaching for a rope in the dark.

I went because my wife still believed I was worth saving, even when I didn’t.

And now four months sober, I’m starting to believe her. I’m learning to live not just for others, but for myself.

So I hold this passport, this little object of state and ink, and it carries something much bigger than me. It carries the truth.

This isn’t just about policy. It’s a mirror. It’s a battlefield. It’s about whether trans people are allowed to exist not just in our hearts and bodies, but in systems, in governments, in documents, and in reality.

Right now, that cruel policy is on pause thanks to a federal lawsuit: Orr v. Trump.

Because of it, there’s a window. A crack in the wall where trans, nonbinary, intersex, and gender-diverse people can apply for passports that reflect who we are—not who the world insists we must be.

If this speaks to you, if your passport still carries someone else's name, someone else's gender, someone else's truth, you can apply now. Make sure to include the attestation form listed on the site.

This window may not stay open forever. This is a critical and fragile moment. I’m deeply grateful to the advocates and legal teams fighting this battle in court. But the fight is far from over. Please share this. Spread the word, especially to trans folks who may not know this window even exists.

To every trans soul reading this:

You are not an error.

You are not a contradiction.

You are not a phase or a policy debate.

You are real.

You are valid.

You are needed.

And your documents should damn well reflect that.