New York’s Proposition 1

“Gender identity” is on the ballot in New York

August 26, 2024

Before getting into Prop 1, I was recently invited to join a discussion on The Speaker Salon about whether men should be permitted to participate in women’s sports (the universal opinion being, categorically, NO). A recording of that discussion is available here and a recap thread on X is available here. Thanks to Speaker Salon for having me!

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There will be an initiative on the ballot in New York this November that would add “gender identity” to the state constitution’s list of protected characteristics by including it in the word “sex.”

The pertinent provision of the state constitution currently reads: 

No person shall be denied the equal protection of the laws of this state or any subdivision thereof. No person shall, because of race, color, creed or religion, be subjected to any discrimination in his or her civil rights by any other person or by any firm, corporation, or institution, or by the state or any agency or subdivision of the state. 

Prop 1 would add the following to the list of protected categories: ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, and sex, where sex includes sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive healthcare and autonomy.

Earlier this year, Women’s Declaration International USA (WDI USA) sent an email message to New York based signatories to the Declaration on Women’s Sex-Based Rights, urging them to vote no. The message noted that the initiative had been “popularly labeled as an Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)” and stated:

The ERA that was written by women’s rights activist Alice Paul in 1943, and ratified by New York State in 1972, provides: “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex.” [emphasis added]

In other words, women are to have equal rights with men.

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Most Americans, including New Yorkers, don’t support the notion that men can be women in law and policy. We can defeat this ballot initiative by spreading the word on what it really does.

Earlier this year, the measure was removed from the ballot because it had been introduced and passed in the state legislature on the very same day in 2022, without a single hearing, arguably in violation of state law, but that decision was overturned on appeal.

I have been corresponding with some New York women about what they think about this. Here is what Emily Viola, a feminist and mom in Brooklyn, had to say: 

I am very concerned about the impact that Proposition 1 will have on the women and children of New York. As a lifelong feminist, I cannot support efforts that will destroy the sex-based rights of women and girls. Our mothers and grandmothers fought hard to demand single-sex spaces, fairness in women's sports and safety for women and girls to be able to fully participate in public life. This proposition would make the idea that men and boys can be legally considered women and girls simply by stating so enshrined in the New York constitution. That means that women and girls will be forced to disrobe in front of, compete against, and be jailed with males who claim to have a "woman identity". Goodbye girls's sports. Goodbye women's prisons. Goodbye lesbian bars. Goodbye single-sex dorm rooms. Proposition 1 would enshrine these ideas within our state constitution. In our constitution. In our laws. For good. 

I have reached out to my state representatives repeatedly about these concerns for the safety, dignity and rights of women and girls. Assembly member Robert Carrol and state Senator Kevin Parker proceeded to gaslight me, ignore my concerns, or even laugh at the potential harms that enshrining undefinable "gender identity" in law will have on  women and girls. In fact, not one Democratic member of the NY state legislature has taken my concerns seriously. It seems that NY Democrats do not care about the sex-based rights of women. In fact, they seek to destroy them. 

I am also deeply concerned about the impacts this law will have on the safety of our children since it seeks to remove age-safeguards and parental consent for medical, mental health, dental and surgical interventions, which could be provided without parental approval or even consent. As a mom of a child who was harmed by misinformed gender "medicine," I know how important it is to keep parents involved in any psychological or medical interventions directed at one's children.

Please raise awareness about the harms of Prop 1 and keep NY's women and children safe. It might already be too late. I hope not.

I asked Emily if she is still a registered Democrat (understanding if she would prefer not to say). Her response: “I am still a registered Democrat, but will not be voting for any Democrat who supports the erasure of women's sex-based rights. That means I will not be voting for any of the Democrats on my ballot. And yes, you can say that.” As Lauren Levey stated in a 2022 letter to Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer about the Democrats erasing lesbians that I posted earlier today, plenty of Democratic women have had it. Emily is one of them.

Maud Maron says:

Prop 1 is the most dishonest, undemocratic attack on NY citizens from the crowd that is constantly lecturing everyone else about “Democracy.” New Yorkers have been excluded from any meaningful notice or conversation about this radical change to our constitution from the same people who love to talk about “inclusion.”

New Yorkers will have gender identity embedded in our constitution as a right from Democratic legislators pretending to protect the already 100% protected abortion access in NY state.

Attorney General James illegally rushing this radical proposal through to the ballot is an insult to all New Yorkers who have every right to expect a lawful, transparent, honest process when our Constitutional rights are being altered.

Maud is a Manhattan resident, mom, and former Democratic candidate for City Council and Congress who has since left the Democratic Party.

There was a rally and press conference earlier today at New York City Hall Park opposing the measure; I haven’t heard how it went, but I’ll be sure to report back if I do.

There are a few things going on with respect to New York’s Prop 1, one terrible and the other even possibly more terrible.

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