Nicole Amber Maines is an American actress and transgender rights activist. She was the anonymous plaintiff, Susan Doe, in the Maine Supreme Judicial Court case Doe v. Regional School Unit 26 regarding gender identity and bathroom use in schools. Maines, who is transgender, was barred from using the female bathroom after a complaint; however, the court ruled denying a transgender student access to the bathroom consistent with their gender identity is unlawful. Maines has since worked as an actress; roles include a television series guest appearance in Royal Pains and a regular role in Supergirl.
Early life and education
Maines and her identical twin brother Jonas were adopted at birth by Kelly and Wayne Maines; one of their biological parents was Kelly's second cousin. Though they spent their early years in Gloversville, New York, they grew up in Portland, Maine. Maines was assigned male at birth and said she knew she was gender misassigned as young as three years old. Maines says she chose the name Nicole after the character Nicole Bristow on the Nickelodeon show Zoey 101. Maines attended the University of Maine, and according to her father chose not to return in the fall of 2018 in order to pursue acting.
''Doe v. Regional School Unit 26''
Maines was Susan Doe in the landmark caseDoe v. Regional School Unit 26, which is also referred to as Doe v. Clenchy. When Maines was in elementary school, the grandfather of a classmate complained about Maines using the girls' bathroom. Following that incident, she was barred from using the female bathroom and forced to use the staff bathroom. Maines and her family sued the school district, claiming the school was discriminating against her. In June 2014, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court ruled that the school district violated the Human Rights Act, and prohibited the district from barring transgender students access to bathrooms consistent with their gender identity. Maines and her family were provided compensation of $75,000 following the discrimination lawsuit.
Career
In 2015, Maines and her family were the subject of Becoming Nicole: The Transformation of an American Family, a book by Washington Post writer Amy Ellis Nutt. It chronicles the family and their coming to terms with Maines being transgender. In June 2015, Maines appeared on the USA Network showRoyal Pains as a transgender teen whose hormones might be endangering her health. In 2016, Maines was one of 11 individuals featured in an HBO documentary titled The Trans List. In the documentary, Maines and several other people relate their personal stories of being transgender. In July 2018 it was announced that Maines would appear as a series regular in the fourth season of The CW series Supergirl. She appeared as Nia Nal, a distant relative of Legion member Dream Girl, and as such played the first transgender superhero on television. Her character is described as a "soulful woman with a fierce drive to protect others." The character is a new reporter whom Kara takes under her wing.
