The state of Florida has cancelled the driving license of a transgender TikTok campaigner after they used a "loophole" to have their gender listed as female when they had been born male.
James Rose, who identifies as non-binary and uses she/they pronouns, announced they had succeeded in acquiring a driving license that identified them as female in a TikTok post. However, on Tuesday, a popular conservative X account shared a letter addressed to them from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) saying the license was no longer valid.
Newsweek contacted James Rose, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and the FLHSMV for comment on Thursday via online contact form, email and telephone respectively outside of regular office hours.
Why It Matters
Conservative controlled Florida has passed a number of laws impacting on the transgender community in recent years including a ban of "classroom discussion" around gender identity and prohibiting puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones for transgender children, though this was later ruled unconstitutional.
The debate over transgender rights, and whether these clash with women's rights, has become extremely heated in recent years with Donald Trump pledging to speak for "you" rather than "they/them" during the recent presidential election campaign.
What To Know
Rose, who goes by @jamesissmiling on TikTok where they have over 520,000 followers, posted a since-deleted video on the platform claiming they had succeeded in getting a driving license that described them as female.
They said: "I just got my gender changed on my driving license in the free f****** state of Florida, my God Ron DeSantis would be screaming right now if he knew this."
Rose continued: "You're not even supposed to be able to do this in this state. Here's the loophole: listen up if you're replacing your driver's license, not renewing it, but replacing it because you [sarcastic finger gesture] lost it they have to take all of your information from what they consider a primary document. A passport is considered a primary document and you can self-identify on your passport."
On Tuesday, the Libs of TikTok X account, which has 3.9 million followers on the platform, reposted Rose's video along with a letter addressed to them from the FLHSMV which said the license had been "cancelled" as its gender identifier was "improperly changed from male to female."
SCOOP: A trans activist boasted about a loophole which allowed him to change his gender marker on his Florida license.
The FLHSMV responded by sending him a letter thanking him for bringing attention to this error and promise action to address it.
Florida doesn't allow an... pic.twitter.com/RHVdJ5p0N0
Referring to Florida law, the letter continued: "The term 'sex' in section 322.17, Florida Statutes, does not refer to a person's internal sense of his or her gender role or identity but is determined by innate and immutable biological and genetic characteristics."
The letter also said the department was investigating whether Rose "knowingly made a false statement about whether you truly lost your original license" which could result in the "cancellation, suspension or revocation" of their driving privileges if found to be the case.
The FLHSMV added that "a valid replacement license with the proper sex identifier of male" was included with the letter.
What People Are Saying
On X, in addition to the FLHSMV letter and original video, the Libs of TikTok account wrote: "SCOOP: A trans activist boasted about a loophole which allowed him to change his gender marker on his Florida license.
"The FLHSMV responded by sending him a letter thanking him for bringing attention to this error and promise action to address it."
The Libs of TikTok account is run by Chaya Raichik, who has become a prominent conservative activist.
Jeremy Redfern, Governor DeSantis's press secretary, shared the Libs of TikTok post on X, adding: "FLHSMV cancelled his license and sent him a corrected one that says 'male.' That's some dedicated service. He should thank them."
What Happens Next
The election of Trump, with a Republican majority in both chambers of Congress, means legislation similar to that in Florida restricting gender identity to "innate and immutable biological and genetic characteristics" could be introduced nationwide.
In a recent TikTok video, Rose urged transgender followers to take steps to change their official gender marker on documents before "that man who doesn't know how to pick a foundation shade" takes office, in apparent reference to Trump.
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