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Non-binary Californian turned away from donating blood
Source: NBC News
Non-binary Californian turned away from donating blood
Van Levy, a 31-year-old San Diego resident who identifies as neither male nor female, was unable to donate blood at the city's blood bank.
March 9, 2019, 3:30 PM EST
By Kate Sosin
Van Levy just wanted to give back. The 31-year-old San Diego resident has donated blood for the past 13 years. But when Levy inquired about donating at the San Diego Blood Bank, the response was discouraging.
“It was like this whole runaround on the phone,” Levy said.
Levy is among a growing number of Californians who have a gender marker “X” on their state IDs instead of the traditional “M” or “F” for male or female. Levy identifies as transgender and non-binary (neither exclusively male nor female) and does not use any pronouns — like he, him, she, her or they.
“They kept wanting me to just come in and see the paperwork and go from there," Levy said of the blood bank. Finally, their answer regarding Levy donating was a “no.”
-snip-
The San Diego Blood Bank declined to confirm the details surrounding Levy’s case, which was first reported by ABC 10 News. However, Michele Corbett, a spokesperson for the Blood Bank, said questions surrounding non-binary donors are new for the organization.
-snip-
Van Levy, a 31-year-old San Diego resident who identifies as neither male nor female, was unable to donate blood at the city's blood bank.
March 9, 2019, 3:30 PM EST
By Kate Sosin
Van Levy just wanted to give back. The 31-year-old San Diego resident has donated blood for the past 13 years. But when Levy inquired about donating at the San Diego Blood Bank, the response was discouraging.
“It was like this whole runaround on the phone,” Levy said.
Levy is among a growing number of Californians who have a gender marker “X” on their state IDs instead of the traditional “M” or “F” for male or female. Levy identifies as transgender and non-binary (neither exclusively male nor female) and does not use any pronouns — like he, him, she, her or they.
“They kept wanting me to just come in and see the paperwork and go from there," Levy said of the blood bank. Finally, their answer regarding Levy donating was a “no.”
-snip-
The San Diego Blood Bank declined to confirm the details surrounding Levy’s case, which was first reported by ABC 10 News. However, Michele Corbett, a spokesperson for the Blood Bank, said questions surrounding non-binary donors are new for the organization.
-snip-
Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/non-binary-californian-turned-away-donating-blood-n981376
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