I don’t know why I was born transgender, but I have no secret agenda. I want my child to live in a world where they are safe and free to be exactly who they are.

Fewer than 1 in 3 people report personally knowing someone who is transgender. Yet the American public is saturated with viral social media videos and political news stories, largely generated by a well-funded coalition of organizations long dedicated to making it as difficult as possible for LGBTQ+ people to go about their daily lives.

These organizations proudly advocate for the abuse of LGBTQ+ young people through the dangerous and discredited practice of conversion therapy, and they have celebrated their role in influencing Texas to “investigate” parents who’re doing their level best to support their transgender kids.

They’ve succeeded in generating national debates about excluding transgender kids from school sports, banning medically necessary health care and even prohibiting restroom usage – all under a guise of “protecting young people.” But these debates are largely missing the point.

Transgender people are our friends, family members and neighbors. They work in the cubicle next to us at the office, and they pray next to us in our houses of worship.

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  • paddirn@lemmy.world
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    8 months ago

    I’m pretty sure the Transgender community is just getting scapegoated by Trump & the GOP because they’re a convenient group to go after. It’s a relatively little known and “strange” group (to mainstream America) that are considered “sexual deviants” and such; a group that, until relatively recently (within 10-20 years), no one would’ve batted an eyelash if you made fun of being transgender or joked about it. It may even still be a reality in some places, my workplace would shitcan you in a heartbeat for that, but I’m sure other places wouldn’t care as much. So just as with illegal immigrants, the Chinese, Muslims, and any other group they can find, the GOP are targeting them to use as a scapegoat for whatever stupid, needlessly cruel shit they can think up.