United States issues its 1st passport with ‘X’ gender marker

By COLLEEN SLEVIN
Associated Press

DENVER (AP) — The United States has issued its first passport with an “X” gender designation for people who don’t identify as male or female. The State Department says it expects to offer the option more broadly early next year. The department didn’t identify the passport recipient. But Dana Zzyym of Fort Collins, Colorado, tells The Associated Press in a telephone interview it was their passport. Zzyym, who prefers a gender-neutral pronoun, has been in a legal battle with the government since 2015 over a passport. Zzyym said the fight for the passport with an accurate gender designation was a way to help the next generation of intersex people win recognition as full citizens with rights.