Amber Yust Photo: Marcio Jose Sanchez

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. –

One of the most annoying experiences a person has to go through is getting a new license from the Department of Motor Vehicles. But for one transgender woman in California, that annoyance turned to harassment. Amber Yust, 24, claims that the DMV worker who helped her change her name from David to Amber sent a harassing letter to the address on her newly printed driver’s license.

“Although I helped you with the name change, I have to say I do not support the reason for it,” says the letter, signed with only a first name and typed on plain paper. “I also do not believe the state’s recognition of it – through official documents – makes it legitimate or any less evil.”

Yust said she also received a pamphlet from a New York-based conservative Catholic ministry.

“Going into a DMV isn’t exactly a fun experience,” Yust said. “So to have someone who dislikes something about you or has some strange interest in you decide to use your personal information for something other than what it was supposed to is really scary. I want people to feel safe.”

Yust has filed claim against the DMV for $25,000 in damages stating that its employee’s actions violated her privacy and civil rights.

In addition to trying to receive damages and attorney’s fees from the DMV, Yust said she plans to seek a court order requiring the DMV to prevent future discrimination “If it was an African-American who went to the DMV and the DMV person sent a letter saying you should be lynched and then sent the address to the KKK, people would be going berserk,” said Yust’s attorney Chris Dolan. “That’s exactly what happened here, but you just insert the word transgender for black and religious fanatic for KKK.”