Jackie Evancho wants to tell President Trump of the 'horrors' her transgender sister has faced
The singer, who performed at inauguration, hopes to meet with the president.
— -- Singer Jackie Evancho, who performed at President Donald Trump's inauguration, wants to speak with Trump about transgender rights.
Evancho, whose 18-year-old sister Juliet is transgender, said she usually tries not to be political.
"I [performed at the inauguration] because it's always been about the honor and not the politics," she told People magazine. "I try my best to stay out of politics."
But the 16-year-old felt the need to speak out after Trump's administration rescinded Obama-era guidance regarding transgender people last month. She was quick to respond to the policy changes on Twitter.
"At that point, something had changed that was going to affect a cause that I believe in," Evancho said. "It was going to affect my sister, who I truly love, and people that I know. It was just natural instinct. I had to do something about it."
She said she's "actively working" on sitting down with Trump to discuss the issue. White House press secretary Sean Spicer said at a February press briefing that Trump would "welcome" a meeting with Evancho.
"I would talk to him about some of the horrors that [Juliet] has experienced," Evancho said. "Hopefully make it a federal issue -- and create some sort of law that will protect my sister and people in her situation."
It appears as though no meeting has officially been established, as Evancho tweeted Monday, asking Trump if he could meet later this week.
Juliet -- born Jacob -- came out to her parents as transgender when she was 13. She's since come out publicly and underwent sex reassignment surgery in January. Evancho said Juliet was bullied at school for being transgender and even filed a federal discrimination lawsuit against the school district after she was barred from using the bathrooms she preferred.
"It makes me feel terrible -- no one should have to deal with that," Evancho said.
The sisters plan to keep working toward transgender rights, and Juliet told People the uplifting messages she has received have helped her stay motivated.
"Getting the messages that we get like, 'Oh, you're so inspiring. You've helped me come out to my family,' or 'You've saved us from being in a dark place,'" she said. "Just hearing those types of things help us keep going, knowing that we're doing something right."