Williams Institute

You're invited to celebrate 25 years of interdisciplinary research that has shaped LGBTQ law and policy. Join us to honor our achievements and the vision of California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Williams Institute co-founder Bill Rubenstein.

RSVP at giving.ucla.edu/WilliamsInstitute25th

House overrides veto: Bathroom bill that limits access to Kansas facilities will become law • Kansas Reflector Kansans will soon be required to use the bathroom of their biological sex at birth in all government buildings.

Besides banning transgender residents from having driver’s licenses that show their gender identity, the new Kansas law also requires people use government restrooms based on sex assigned at birth.

Kansas is home to 29,700 people 13+ who identify as transgender. Learn more at bit.ly/TranspeopleUS

This year, the Williams Institute celebrates 25 years of independent data-driven research on LGBTQ law and policy. 
Join us as we reflect on our impact—and look ahead to the next 25.

Kansas revokes driver’s licenses from trans residents in latest assault on rights Law demanding IDs match ‘sex at birth’ also includes bathroom ban provision for trans people in public buildings

An estimated 22,400 adults in Kansas identify as transgender and are subject to a new law that prevents them from having a driver’s license that accurately reflects their gender identity. bit.ly/TranspeopleUS

Today is HIV is not a Crime Awareness Day. Our new report on HIV stigma finds that in 2024, 43% of adults in the United States held at least one stigmatizing belief about people living with HIV, an increase from 31% in 2021.
Full report at tinyurl.com/HIVstigmaWI

More than half of transgender youth in the U.S. live in states with laws that restrict their participation in school sports. Read the full report at tinyurl.com/anti-transpolicy

On Feb 26, three new State Dept. rules take effect, imposing sweeping conditions on organizations receiving U.S. foreign aid including a ban on promoting "gender ideology." Our new report examines the impact on trans, nonbinary, and intersex people globally.

Read at tinyurl.com/GGRExpansion

Save the date for our 2026 Annual Gala on April 18 from 7 to 9pm at UCLA's Carnesale Commons. We are excited to celebrate our 25th anniversary of research that matters with you all. Registration details coming soon.

Tennessee bill lets businesses and people refuse to recognize same-sex marriages Queer couples may still be able to marry according to the law of the land, but the GOP is betting that its edges are still soft enough to cut.

According to the 2020 U.S. Census, 20,773 same-sex couples live in Tennessee, and more than half of them are married. Data Source: tinyurl.com/CensusSnap

@theadvocatebr.bsky.social:
www.advocate.com/politics/sta...

More than 80% of transgender youth in the West and nearly three-quarters in the Northeast live in states with shield laws protecting their access to gender-affirming care.

Read the full report at tinyurl.com/anti-transpolicy

Join us today at 12pm PT to discuss recent Williams Institute research on victimization against transgender and nonbinary people in California and strategies for addressing the violence. RSVP at tinyurl.com/TransHCCA

More than one-third of transgender youth in the U.S. live in states with protective gender-affirming care shield laws. Read the full report at tinyurl.com/anti-transpolicy

Our new research shows that hundreds of federal surveys removed questions about sexual orientation and gender identity since the start of the second Trump administration. Read the full report at: tinyurl.com/SOGIdata

The vast majority of transgender youth in the South and half of transgender youth in the Midwest live in states with at least one law or policy that restricts their rights. Read the full report at tinyurl.com/anti-transpolicy

Join us on February 19 at noon PT to discuss recent Williams Institute research on victimization against transgender and nonbinary people in California and strategies for addressing the violence. RSVP today at tinyurl.com/TransHCCA

Half of transgender youth in the U.S. live in 27 states that have banned access to gender-affirming care.

Learn more in our report at tinyurl.com/anti-transpolicy

Thank you to everyone who joined us on Sunday for our 2026 Jazz Brunch.

Special thanks to our hosts James Frost and Peter J. Cooper, along with Karen Beaches, Trans Chorus of Los Angeles, and the Kenneth Zayas Jazz Trio for making the afternoon so special.

See more photos at tinyurl.com/JB26Photos

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission voted to rescind its guidance on how to protect transgender workers. 
Our research shows that 8 in 10 transgender employees reported experiencing discrimination or harassment at work. bit.ly/Transworkers

@apnews.com : https://tinyurl.com/2e2krkky

On National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, we are reminded that Black Americans are disproportionately affected by HIV criminalization. They are more likely to be arrested and convicted of HIV-related allegations. Read our summary of research at tinyurl.com/HIVBlackAmericans

More than one-third of transgender youth in the U.S. live in states that restrict the use of gender-affirming pronouns in schools or require schools to notify parents when a student requests a pronoun change. Read the full report at tinyurl.com/anti-transpolicy

LGBTQ+ and non-LGBTQ+ people had similar needs after the LA fires. However, our study found pre-existing inequities in housing stability, health, income, and social inclusion shaped recovery outcomes and compounded harm for LGBTQ+ people.

Read the full report at https://tinyurl.com/EatonFireImpact

382,800 transgender youth ages 13-17 live in the 29 states that restrict access to gender-affirming care, sports, bathrooms and facilities, or the use of gender-affirming pronouns in schools.

Read the full report at tinyurl.com/anti-transpolicy

According to the 2020 Census, there are 27,023 same-sex couples living in Virginia. More than half of them are married. Read our full report at tinyurl.com/CensusSnap
@lgbtqnation.com : https://tinyurl.com/yksnzm89

Norway has universal health care & publicly funded gender-affirming care. Yet in our survey of TNB people in the country, almost half of those with unmet needs report being unable to afford hormones. More than half could not afford surgery, & 1 of 5 had been refused treatment. tinyurl.com/GACNorway

Nearly half of transgender youth in the U.S. live in states with laws that prohibit transgender youth from using bathrooms and other facilities that align with their gender identity in schools or government buildings. Read the full report at https://tinyurl.com/anti-transpolicy

There are 2.1 million people who identify as transgender in the United States. More than 75% (1.5 million) are under the age of 35. https://bit.ly/USTransPop

@lgbtqnation.com:  https://tinyurl.com/3dy6yyk7

More than one-third of the trans and nonbinary people we surveyed in Norway reported having ever attempted suicide – about 12 times the rate in the general population – and three-quarters reported clinically high levels of mental distress. 

Read the full report at tinyurl.com/GACNorway

An estimated 1.2 million LGBTQ people in the U.S identify as nonbinary. The majority use queer, bisexual, pansexual, or asexual to describe their sexual orientation.

Read the full report at bit.ly/NonbinaryLGBTQ

In our new survey of LGBTQ+ survivors of the LA Fires, several participants noted that civil rights protections for sexual orientation and gender identity had been visibly removed from FEMA forms, reinforcing a sense of exclusion at a time of acute vulnerability.

https://tinyurl.com/EatonFireImpact

According to the 2020 Census, 57% of cohabitating same-sex couples are married and 22% of them are raising their own children. 
Learn more at tinyurl.com/CensusSnap