On July 3, 2018, New Jersey Governor Phillip Murphy signed the “Babs Siperstein Law,” named for trans rights activist Babs Siperstein. The law, which had previously been vetoed twice by former Governor Chris Christie, ensured that trans and non-binary people born in the state of New Jersey could change their birth certificates to match their gender identity without proof of gender reassignment surgery. Although Siperstein died on February 3, 2019, two days after her namesake law went into effect, she left behind a legacy of LGBTQ advocacy. 

Not until the late 1980s, when she was in her late 40s, did Siperstein come out to her wife Carol, who was supportive through every step of Siperstein’s transition. Still, Siperstein was reluctant to come out publicly because of fear of the impact on her family and her business, Siperstein Fords Paint Corporation. For the next decade, Siperstein lived a double life: only her wife and eventually their three children and some trusted friends were aware of her identity as Babs, and she kept her trans and gay friends separate from her straight friends.  

Carol’s sudden death from cancer in 2001 was a huge blow to Siperstein and prompted her decision to accelerate her gradual transition. Five years later, she was outed by a local newspaper.  

Even before her outing, Siperstein had been fighting for trans rights under a pseudonym, “Barbra Casbar.” After she was outed, she did so openly, serving as New Jersey’s first transgender delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 2004 and 2008; in 2012 she was a superdelegate and a member of the DNC committee. In 2009, Siperstein and 23 others co-authored the Dallas Principles, a set of eight demands outlining LGBTQ+ equality. She held Republican and Democrats alike accountable on issues of trans rights. Siperstein worked hard to codify into law protections for the trans community and the greater LGBTQ+ community of New Jersey, and her labors finally came to fruition with the passing of the “Babs Siperstein Law.” 

Sources: 

“Amend Sex Designation to Reflect Gender Identity on a Birth Certificate,” State of New Jersey Department of Health; https://www.nj.gov/health/vital/correcting-vital/sexdesignation/. 

“Babs Siperstein Law,”P.L. 2018, Chapter 58; https://pub.njleg.gov/Bills/2018/AL18/58_.HTM;  

 “The Dallas Principles,” archived with the Wayback Machine; https://web.archive.org/web/20090608043529/http://www.thedallasprinciples.org/The_Dallas_Principles. 

Kowalska, Monica. “Interview with Babs Siperstein,” The Heroines of My Life, May 2,6 2013; https://theheroines.blogspot.com/2013/05/interview-with-babs-siperstein.html. 

“Executive Order No. 54,” February 3, 2019; https://nj.gov/infobank/eo/056murphy/pdf/EO-54.pdf