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Nov 21 • 11 tweets • 4 min read
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.
Subscribe to support my journalism. 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.
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.
Subscribe to support my journalism. 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.
Subscribe to support my journalism. 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.
There is a push among some orgs, "moderate" legislators, and even trans people to "give up the sports issue" in hopes that will stop hate.
I have watched moderates try this in 23 state houses.
It doesn't work. There's no amount of give you can offer that stops them from taking.
Sports are the foot in the door, the asterisk they offer on our gender identity.
Once you give that up, they then sell you on adding that asterisk to kids...
To birth certificates, because you have to enforce the sports laws.
To bathrooms, which are like locker rooms right?
Nov 12 • 5 tweets • 2 min read
Governor Andy Beshear, in a Trump +30 state, gives advice to Democrats: Do not throw LGBTQ+ people under the bus, it will not work.
His advice to dems: Lead on your values.
This man ran on a fully inclusive campaign in 2023 and won. He received the same kind of ads Harris did.
Just look at this quote here. This man is incredible with his support for trans and queer people.
Nov 6 • 5 tweets • 2 min read
Some immediate steps I believe that all trans people should take:
- Get your passport. Today. It takes time to come in and this will likely be shut down under Trump.
- Update every ID your state allows you to.
- Make sure you have a supply of medication in case of disruption
- Stay in touch and ACTIVE with your local (LOCAL) LGBTQ+ org and mutual aid groups. This can help with supply disruptions.
- If you are considering moving to a new state, this is a good time to do so. Not everyone wants to or can move, so respect that.
Oct 28 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
1. I have released my final pre-election anti-trans risk map.
The national risk has been increased to high due to a potential Trump presidency and national targeting.
Texas has moved to Do Not Travel due to bathroom bounties in Odessa.
Subscribe to support my journalism. 2. In the full report, you can see the rationale for the increases as well as view every state for youth and adults. This will be my final map for the pre-election period.
I believe that this is a mischaracterization of Harris answer on NBC, which I thought was particularly strong.
Harris answer on NBC focused on 3 things:
- 1) This is a decision between doctors and patients
- 2) The law requires medical care be given
- 3) Trump's ads are harmful
On it being a decision between doctors and patients, this mirrors her abortion framework in the same interview, see:
This is the same framework I watched Dems defeat anti-trans laws in dozens of states use.
Oct 26 • 11 tweets • 3 min read
1. In a new escalation, Odessa, Texas has just enacted the first ever bathroom bounty law targeting trans people.
It puts $10K bounties on trans people using the bathroom in the city, payable by the trans person to the cis person.
Subscribe to support my journalism. 2. The new ordinance, which passed this week, is the first of its kind in the nation - it will require trans people pay cis people who accuse them of being in the wrong bathroom "no less than $10,000" in a civil procedure.
If you're upset at the Washington Post and LA Times being controlled by billionaires, consider following independent journalists. Legacy media has been on the downswing for a while now, and there are really amazing people stepping in and doing the work themselves.
A list:
Chris Geiner at Law Dork's coverage of court fights and the Supreme Court rivals anything I've ever seen at the WaPo, LA Times, NYT.
1. A recent story was published to the New York Times by Azeen Ghorayshi claiming that a prominent gender researcher, Joanna Olson-Kennedy, is withholding data on trans care from a NIH grant.
A fact check shows this to be highly misleading.
Subscribe to support my journalism. 2. The latest piece is an example of why so few people trust the New York Times when it comes to journalism around transgender people. Facts are selectively omitted and nefarious and misleading claims run constantly.
1. In what may be a sign for US Republican counterparts, the PC Premier Blaine Higgs has lost his election.
Earlier this year, he reportedly called his anti-trans stances and controversial policies "a political winner" to the Canadian Press.
Subscribe to support my journalism. 2. Blaire Higgs' loss comes as anti-trans ads have been raging across the United States, promoted by Republicans with access to tens of millions of dollars.
Higgs saw his party lose on this issue last night in a sweeping defeat.
1. A conversion therapy organization has filed a brief with the Supreme Court's trans ban case asserting that Lyme Disease, Strep Throat, and even manga are what makes people transgender.
This is, of course, pseudoscience.
Subscribe to support my journalism. Lets dig in. 2. The brief, which was filed in support of Tennessee's gender affirming care ban currently being heard by the Supreme Court, turns to many fake causes of being transgender to explain why trans youth do not need gender affirming care.
1. In the face of $20 million in anti-trans ads, Gov. Tim Walz just defended queer and trans youth at length on Glennon Doyle's podcast.
He includes medical rights, identity rights, and more.
It follows Kamala Harris' strong Fox News answer.
Subscribe to support my journalism. 2. Walz pulled no punches, calling out anti-trans attack ads for fomenting hate and demonizing a minority to maintain political power.
You can read my story here, where I cover his most notable quotes.
1. In a hostile interview with Fox News tonight, Harris was asked about anti-trans ads by Brett Baier.
These ads have swept the nation, over $80 million spent nationwide.
She shut down the question in a way no other Dem has this week.
Subscribe to support my journalism. 2. In her answer to Baier in the Fox News interview, Kamala Harris stated that she would follow the law, which requires inmates get medically necessary care.
She also admonished Trump for spending $20M on ads like this "to create fear"
1. Today, Texas Democratic Senate Candidate Colin Allred released an ad in response to anti-trans attack ads, stating, "I do not support boys in girls sports," an anti-trans dogwhistle.
He is the first major Dem candidate to do so this cycle.
Subscribe to support my journalism. 2. Allred's response is significant. He's the first major Democratic candidate to acquiesce to anti-trans messaging.
The decision to do so may be ill advised, and could upset his LGBTQ+ constituents. Read my story here:
A federal judge just ruled in Pennsylvania that LGBTQ+ topics, and books with trans characters, cannot be taught without parental permission/opt out.
He ruled in favor of this by comparing trans people to dogs and dissected frogs, which also require opt out, he says.
Here is the case on Pacermonitor.
I do not believe it has the opinion yet. I have it though and am trying to find a way to upload it.
1. In a devastating report from the CDC, we learn that one in four trans kids have attempted to take their lives in the past year.
One in ten required medical treatment for their attempt, dispelling myths that the attempts "aren't serious."
Subscribe to support my journalism. 2. The latest CDC study comes a week after we learned from a study published in Nature Human Behavior that anti-trans laws cause an increase in suicide attempts by up to 72%.
Now, we know that these attempts are common, and devastating.
1. A Reuters investigation uncovered Elon Musk donated $50M to failed anti-trans in 2022.
Shortly after the investigation was published, his PAC, America PAC, announced a partnership with Charlie Kirk's Turning Point Action.
Subscribe to support my journalism. Lets dig in. 2. Elon Musk has emerged as a prominent anti-trans campaigner. However, few knew that he was channeling tens of millions into anti-trans ads as early as 2022. These ads failed entirely.
1. In a horrifying sign for transgender care in the United Kingdom, multiple NHS officials tasked with trans care in the UK have decided to speak alongside conversion therapists at an anti-LGBTQ+ hate group conference.
Subscribe to support my journalism. Lets dig in. 2. The conference is put on by SPLC-designated hate group, SEGM, which has been called the hub of an "anti-LGBTQ+ pseudoscience network."
Now, they can exert power over the NHS and transgender people.
1. A new letter from the Texas DPS hints that the agency may begin revoking old drivers licenses for transgender people, sending them new ones in the mail with incorrect gender markers and even potentially their old names.
Subscribe to support my journalism. Lets dig in. 2. Last month, the Texas DPS indicated it will stop processing court ordered gender marker changes, and even name changes if accompanied by a gender marker change.
A new document hints that they may make this retroactive.