Transgender youth in the United States run a gauntlet of challenges on a daily basis. Those who are fortunate enough to live and present as their authentic gender are faced with discrimination in workplaces, schools, faith communities, the internet, their own homes, and general public spaces, prejudice, sexual and physical violence and the constant threat thereof, verbal abuse, and much more. But not all transgender individuals are even this lucky. Some are still forbidden by their parents or legal guardians from wearing the hair, makeup, and clothing of their preference, dating the gender of their preference, and going by gender-appropriate first and middle names and pronouns. Some are even buried as their assigned gender in direct opposition to their wishes.

In light of the tragic and recent suicide of Leelah Alcorn, we feel compelled to act. Leelah's dying wish was to make her death "...mean something. My death needs to be counted in the number of transgender people who commit suicide this year." A widely sourced and cited statistic states that 41% of transgender individuals in the United States have attempted suicide. This is no coincidence, and the conditions fueling these tragedies will not change until the political climate does. Leelah committed suicide as a result of the hardships accompanying life as a trans teen, and now she will be buried in a suit as Joshua Alcorn. Her obituary has already been published with this incorrect and insulting information.

We urge the United States Congress to quickly write and enact federal legislation affording the right, as of no later than their respective twelfth birthday, to transgender youth to change their legal gender through a convenient, affordable, and widely accessible process. We insist that this decision be outside the influence of parents or legal guardians, and that it may be reversed by the individual at a later date but that parents or guardians may not appeal either decision at any time, under any circumstance except via delivery of notarized paperwork expressing the individual's sincere wishes to do so. This transition must be fully functional, providing all the rights and allowances afforded to those assigned the individual's gender of choice at birth, and should remain effective until reversed, meaning that funeral arrangements must be in accordance with the individual's legal gender at their time of death.

The reality is that transgender youth feel they are without options with alarming frequency, and are often correct. If nothing else, our citizens should be guaranteed the rights to live a dignified life and die a dignified death. The stakes of this petition are nothing short of life and death. Please do right by these people who have been wronged for so long.