As a presidential candidate, Joe Biden promised to "direct federal resources to help prevent violence against transgender women, particularly transgender women of color."

In office, Biden has not only offered substantial outreach to the transgender community but has also leveraged several federal departments in service of this promise.

The Biden administration convened the first Interagency Working Group on Safety, Opportunity, and Inclusion for Transgender and Gender Diverse Individuals, which spent several months seeking input on such issues as homelessness and housing, youth and foster care, immigration, transportation security, criminal justice, education, employment, and labor. 

On Nov. 20, 2021 — Transgender Day of Remembrance — the White House issued an initial report on the findings from these sessions. Here are some key actions cited in the report:

• The Justice Department enhanced support for the National Center for Culturally Responsive Victim Services within the Office for Victims of Crime, including efforts to bolster transgender-focused organizations' ability to help crime victims.

• The department's Office on Violence Against Women funded grants for transgender-serving organizations.

• The department's Community Oriented Policing Services office is co-hosting a training session on campus safety with the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators.

• The National Institutes of Health prioritized research on "gender-affirming procedures" to improve standards of care for both physical and mental health. 

• The Treasury and Education departments clarified that activities under an existing federal program known as Community Violence Intervention qualified for funding from the American Rescue Plan, the coronavirus and economic relief package signed by Biden in early 2021. Transgender individuals are among the groups targeted for assistance under the Community Violence Intervention program.

• The State Department's Global Equality Fund provided funding to ensure human rights for "transgender, gender diverse, and intersex persons."

• The U.S. Agency for International Development "supported legal recognition for transgender people, so that their official identity documents are aligned with their gender."

"The Biden administration has taken the time to listen to transgender people and transgender-led organizations, and they are aware of many of the opportunities they have to address the challenges facing our communities," said Rodrigo Heng-Lehtinen, executive director and the National Center for Transgender Equality.

We rate this a Promise Kept.