HHS replaces name on transgender admiral's official portrait with deadname in act of 'pettiness and bigotry'

"The Department of Health and Human Services, under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has removed the name "Rachel" from Adm. Rachel Levine's official portrait, replacing it with her deadname and doing so beneath the mounted glass typically used for permanent institutional displays. Levine was the first transgender person confirmed by the U.S. Senate, something that took place under President Joe Biden."

"The modification appears to have occurred during the recent federal shutdown, shortly after Assistant Secretary for Health Brian Cristine was confirmed by the Senate. Such an action during a shutdown raises immediate procedural concerns. Shutdown rules restrict employees to duties tied to public safety or health emergencies. Altering a portrait, especially removing the frame's glass and replacing it with a different nameplate, does not appear to fall into that category."

"Adrian Shanker, who served as Levine's deputy and directed the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health's external affairs unit, said the move reflects a troubling misuse of institutional authority. "During her entire time as assistant secretary for health and admiral of the United States Public Health Service, Admiral Levine was a dedicated public health servant," Shanker told The Advocate. "She was working to end the HIV epidemic, respond to syphilis surges, improve mental health and nutrition"

The Department of Health and Human Services, under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., removed the name 'Rachel' from Adm. Rachel Levine's official portrait and replaced it with her deadname. The alteration took place beneath the mounted glass used for permanent displays on the seventh floor of the Humphrey Building in Washington, D.C., where portraits of Public Health Corps leaders hang. Levine was the first transgender person confirmed by the U.S. Senate during President Joe Biden's administration. The change appears to have occurred during the recent federal shutdown, shortly after Assistant Secretary for Health Brian Cristine's confirmation, raising procedural concerns because shutdown rules limit duties to public safety or health emergencies. Adrian Shanker, Levine's former deputy, called the move a troubling misuse of institutional authority and noted her public-health work on HIV, syphilis, mental health, and nutrition.

Read at Advocate.com