Trans teen wins the right to look like herself in driver's license photo

By Xeni Jardin


Chase Culpepper, 17, was told by DMV officials in South Carolina that she was prohibited from wearing makeup in her driver's license photo. The transgender teen sued in federal court for sex discrimination and violating her free speech rights. And she won.

"I am thrilled with the outcome of my lawsuit," Culpepper said in a statement. "My clothing and makeup reflect who I am. From day one, all I wanted was to get a driver's license that looks like me."

After today's settlement announcement, trans and genderqueer people in South Carolina will now be allowed to take license photos that reflect their everyday appearance.

[Culpepper] filed the federal lawsuit last September, accusing the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles of sex discrimination and violating her free speech. In the spring of 2014, she arrived at the DMV office in Anderson, S.C. wearing mascara and eye shadow, ready to take her driver's license photo. She says department officials promptly told her she had to remove the cosmetics before taking the photo because they were a "disguise."

More at NPR, and Reuters.

Under the terms of the settlement, the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles has promised to to send Culpepper a written apology and train staff how to treat transgender and gender-nonconforming individuals in professional settings with respect.