The British artist and the lead singer of the band REM called for equal right for transgender prison inmates in response to mistreatment at a Georgia prison.
- Apr 8, 2015
AceShowbiz - Elton John and Michael Stipe teamed up to call for protection and equal right of transgender inmates. The statement came as a response to an allegation of mistreatment at a Georgia prison.
Ashley Diamond, a transgender woman, filed a lawsuit in February from the Southern Poverty Law Center against Georgia Department of Correction officials. In her lawsuit, she admitted that because of hormone therapy denial for three years, her body suffered greatly as the result. She also alleged that she had been raped at least seven times during her three years in prison.
In response to the lawsuit, the U.S. Justice Department spoke out on Friday, April 3 on behalf of Diamond. The department said that prison officials must treat a prisoner's gender identity condition just like how they treat any other medical or mental health condition. They further claimed that state's denial of hormone therapy for gender dysphoria was "cruel and unusual punishment."
John and Stipe then showed support for the department's statement. "We applaud the US Department of Justice for supporting Ashley Diamond and the trans community in arguing that Georgia's policy of denying transgender inmates their medically necessary hormone treatment is unconstitutional," they wrote on Tuesday, April 7, backing up the justice department.
The celebrities added, "Transgender women in male prisons have an equal right to protection from violence and abuse in prison, and yet they continue to face horrific injustices."
"But we must do more to end the culture of violence and discrimination surrounding gender identity and expression," the joint statement further said. "We urge the state of Georgia to embrace desperately needed changes to their correctional system."
