On Monday, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that in the near future transgender NYC inmates will be housed with the gender they identify with.
The mayor has given the NYC Dept. of Corrections six months to implement a policy that will allow the inmates to be housed safely. The move comes in an effort to bring the DOC more in line with a mayoral executive order requiring agencies in the city to allow people to use restrooms and other facilities which are in line with the gender they identify with.
The 2016 executive order mandated that "city-owned buildings such as schools and recreation centers must let people use the bathrooms of the gender they identify with," reported NBC New York.
"It's the city's responsibility to protect the rights and safety of all New Yorkers, and that means protecting transgender individuals in city jails as well,” said de Blasio in a statement.
The announcement from city officials means NYC will join San Francisco in having a policy aimed at safely housing transgender inmates.
The city already has a Transgender Housing Unit at Rikers Island, which will be kept in place for transgender inmates who would prefer to reside there.
Source: nbcnewyork.com