Incarcerated Woman Speaks Out on the Impact of SB 132

This video contains a clip of a real recorded phone call between WoLF Legal Director, Lauren Adams, and Michelle, a woman who is currently incarcerated in a California women’s prison.

SB 132, authored by Senator Scott Wiener of California, (officially titled the Transgender Respect, Agency and Dignity Act) was signed into law by California Governor Gavin Newsom in September of 2020, and went into effect on Jan. 1, 2021.

The bill allows incarcerated individuals who identify as “transgender, non-binary and intersex” to be housed and searched in a manner “consistent with their gender identity.”

As of April 2021, over 261 requests for transfers (nearly entirely men seeking transfer to women’s prisons) have been made since the law went into effect. None have yet been denied.

In 2009, California reported that 20 percent of inmates who identify as trans are sex offenders. This means at least 50 current transfer requests to women’s facilities are likely sex offenders. The California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation itself acknowledges that putting men (90% of whom still have functional penises) in women’s prisons presents a risk of pregnancy.

Women who are currently incarcerated in California prisons are bravely speaking out against SB 132 and sharing the devastating impact on female inmates.