These are states with the worst anti-trans laws or enforcements, and showing major signs at increasing those laws with the next legislative cycle.
High risk states for extreme anti-trans laws:
- Arizona
- Idaho
- Indiana
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Missouri
- Montana
- Ohio
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- West Virginia
Momentum for extreme anti-trans legislation is there within one election cycle.
Medium Risk, be ready for anti-trans legislation:
- Any red state not listed
- Some purple states like Virginia, Pennsylvania
These states have considered anti-trans legislation. A right shift in legislatures combined with rising anti-trans sentiment could turn things quickly
Low Risk, keep a close watch:
- Delaware
- Maine
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- Rhode Island
These states have passed on strong protections for trans people. They are low risk for anti-trans laws, but still have some risk.
For those searching for the safest states:
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Hawaii
- Illinois
- Massachusetts
- New York
- Oregon
- Vermont
- Washington
- Washington, D.C.*
These states have the strongest protections and defeated anti-trans bills handily.
There are a few states from this list that I am on the fence on. Mississippi could be higher risk than I anticipate. New Jersey and Rhode Island could be lower risk. Still, this is my best assessment from watching anti-trans legislation for 3 years now. Hopefully this helps.
Alt text version of the main map:
I will try to produce a colorblind-friendly version of this map tomorrow!
Here's a colorblind version! Lots of people did these, but I'll go ahead and thank @_a__n__d__r__a_ (and everyone else!)
1. Nancy Mace, in an interview, made it clear that her opposition to Sarah McBride in Bathrooms was never about safety.
She stated, "It's offensive that Sarah McBride thinks [she's] my equal."
The audacity of a trans person being her equal.
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2. Nancy mace's comments show how attacks on one trans congresswoman in a bathroom were never about her being dangerous, or unsafe. It's about raw hate.
3. In a Newsmax Interview, Mace stated, “It is offensive that a man in a skirt could ever think [she’s] my equal, that his challenges are the same as mine. They’re not. [She’s] forcing [her] genitals into women’s restrooms, into dressing rooms, into locker rooms. It’s sick."
1. On day 1 of prefiling, Republicans have filed 32 anti-trans bills in the state of Texas.
The bills target transgender people with bounties, could shut down Pride parades, ban gender marker changes, and force mass-scale chromosome testing.
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2. The latest suite of bills in Texas comes after the largest campaign targeting transgender people in history. Republicans, emboldened by the election results, could press forward with bills considered too extreme in previous years.
Some have argued that Democrats should give up on trans people in sports.
As a leading transgender journalist covering the issue for years, I can say that this is a strategy doomed to fail.
Here's why.
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2. In the wake of Harris loss in the 2024 election, a debate has emerged over trans participation in sports... on whether or not Democrats should abandon "the sports issue."
This is deeply misguided. I explain why in my latest piece.
3. If you had a time machine in 2019 and traveled to 2024, the shift over trans rights in the US would be shocking. In the 2019, trans people could openly access care in all states.
Now... bounties in bathrooms, adults cut off from medical care, and drivers licenses pulled.