Fights at Juvenile Facility Involve Trans Youth Placed in Wrong Facility

According to the Advocate, there were two fights at the Washington, D.C.’s Youth Services Center on July 7. One of the fights left a transgender girl and another teen severely injured. Five people were charged with assault against the two teens, and both sides were reassigned to different housing units. Fortunately, both situations de-escalated quickly, and the teens got necessary care, says a Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services (DYRS) official.

The one factor about this whole situation, however, was that the trans girl was put in an all-male unit. According to the DYRS, they have “an LGBTQI policy that was followed by facility staff,” established back in 2012. Looking closer at the policy, though, the Advocate reads “Transgender and intersex youth shall not automatically be housed according to their genitalia … DYRS staff shall make housing decisions for transgender youth taking into account the youth’s perception of where he or she will be most secure, as well as any recommendations from the youth’s healthcare provider.”

Based on this statement, the DYRS decision to put a girl in an all-boys unit goes directly against said policy. Maybe if the teen wasn’t housed in a unit that didn’t reflect her gender identity, these fights could’ve been prevented. No one would have gotten hurt in that case. Instead, the girl in question is going through a similar situation that trans women are experiencing in prisons right now, which is not great for trans teens or trans adults.

They DYRS hasn’t explained why these fights broke out or why they placed a trans girl in an all-male institution. We barely know the names of the people involved (and it will hopefully stay that way for their own privacy). If transphobia had something to do with this, though, I wouldn’t be surprised.

It seems like kids who are struggling can’t even catch a break, but I hope they do soon.

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