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First person in the U.S. to be legally declared non-binary.
| James Shupe | |
|---|---|
 Shupe in 2019 | |
| Born | James Clifford Shupe (1963-08-10) August 10, 1963 (age 61) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch | United States Army |
| Service years | 1982–2000 |
| Rank | Sergeant First Class |
| Awards | |
| Children | 1 |
James Clifford Shupe (born 1963; formerly Jamie Shupe) is a retired United States Army soldier who in 2016 became the first person in the United States to obtain legal recognition of a non-binary gender. In 2019, he released a statement explaining that he had "returned to male birth sex".
Biography
Born male, Shupe grew up in southern Maryland as one of eight children. He and his wife, Sandy, were married in 1987. They have one daughter. He served in the U.S. Army for 18 years, receiving a number of military decorations, and retired in 2000 as a sergeant first class.
Shupe says he was physically and sexually abused by relatives during childhood. He recalls his mother punishing him for behaving like a "sissy", and says that he was denied the right to explore his gender expression or gender identity. That suppression continued through his military career, which included periods before and during Don't ask, don't tell. After he retired, Shupe began living as a transgender woman in 2013. He chose the gender-neutral first name "Jamie" and convinced the Army to change his sex marker to female on military records.
In June 2016, Shupe successfully petitioned a Multnomah County, Oregon, court to change his sex designation to non-binary, in the first legal recognition of a non-binary gender in the United States. That November, he was issued a birth certificate in Washington, D.C., with a sex marker of "unknown". Lambda Legal later cited Shupe's petition as a legal precedent for non-binary gender markers in the passport lawsuit Zzyym v. Pompeo.
Shupe is a critic of transgender surgeries, cautioning against what he says are high complication rates. He has also expressed opposition to transgender people serving in the military.
In 2018 Shupe and his wife moved to Ocala, Florida, where Shupe says he feels safe and in a community that aligns well with his values.
In January 2019, Shupe announced that he no longer identified as non-binary and was returning to identifying as male. A comprehensive interview with Shupe was published in late 2019.
See also
References
- ^ Miner, Colin (June 12, 2016). "Military Veteran Says 'Jamie' is Neither Male Nor Female". Portland, OR Patch. Archived from the original on June 13, 2016. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
- ^ Dowell, Rosemarie (January 20, 2020). "Ocala man blasts gender identity as 'sham' after reclaiming male birth status". Ocala-News.com.
- ^ Dake, Lauren (June 16, 2016). "Jamie Shupe becomes first legally non-binary person in the US". the Guardian. Archived from the original on June 16, 2016. Retrieved November 22, 2018.
- ^ O'Hara, Mary Emily (July 23, 2016). "Why can't the nation's first legally nonbinary person get an ID?". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on July 26, 2016. Retrieved November 23, 2018.
- ^ Mele, Christopher (June 13, 2016). "Oregon Court Allows a Person to Choose Neither Sex". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 13, 2016. Retrieved November 22, 2018.
- ^ Woodstock, Molly (March 10, 2017). "Male? Female? Jamie Shupe Battles for a Third Option". Portland Monthly. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
- "Case: Zzyym v. Pompeo (formerly Zzyym v. Tillerson & Zzyym v. Kerry) Plaintiff's Reply Brief". Lambda Legal. June 15, 2016. Retrieved November 23, 2018.
- Dorman, Sam (November 17, 2018). "Some Veterans Call for Taxpayer-Funded Gender Surgery — This Fmr Army Sergeant Tried Transitioning and Disagrees". IJR. Archived from the original on November 23, 2018. Retrieved November 23, 2018.
- Foden-Vencil, Kristian (July 26, 2017). "Oregon's Transgender Population Reacts To Trump's Military Ban". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
- Medina, Carlos. "Gender identity pioneer calls Ocala home". Ocala.com. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
- "What The First Nonbinary American Wants The Supreme Court To Know". The Federalist. October 8, 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2022.