On Monday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that prohibits biological males from being housed in female federal prisons. The order affects a significant portion of the current female inmate population, with about 15% of the women in federal prisons being men who identify as women. According to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, 1,538 out of 10,047 inmates in female federal prisons are male.
Additionally, the executive order bans the use of federal funds for transgender surgeries, hormone treatments, and other gender-affirming medical procedures for inmates. It mandates that males not be housed in women’s prisons or detention centers, and it prohibits any medical treatments aimed at altering an inmate’s appearance to match the opposite sex.
The order has faced criticism from several left-leaning groups. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has condemned it as a move to erase transgender people’s legal recognition, and Lambda Legal has called the order unconstitutional. Legal challenges to block the order’s implementation are expected.
