This op-ed originally appeared on pridesource.com 03.06.2025

When straight people see the acronym LGBTQ+, they tend to think of the varied people falling under its broad umbrella as a monolith — a cohesive group of folks united by our queerness. But those of us who are part of the LGBTQ+ community know how wrong that perception can sometimes be.  

In reality, there can be clear divisions and lack of support for each other. And that lack of unity, especially in times as perilous as these, can end up hurting all of us. 

What has me thinking about this lately is President Donald Trump’s recent flurry of executive orders specifically targeting trans people and the response — or more accurately, the lack of response — from some members of the gay and lesbian community.  

This is a point that needs to be made absolutely clear: Anyone who thinks the issues affecting trans people aren’t fundamentally connected with the broader LGBTQ+ community doesn’t know or understand the history of our movement and how it began. The fact is, it wasn’t white, cisgender gay men like me who launched the movement to obtain equal rights. Instead, it was trans women of color who played a leading role in the 1969 Stonewall Riots, which played a pivotal role in launching the LGBTQ+ civil rights movement. 

Angelica Christina, board director of the Stonewall Inn Gives Back Initiative, was blunt in her assessment of the debt owed trans people: 

“Pride would not exist without trans people, especially trans women of color like Marsha P. Johnson, Sylvia Rivera and Miss Major Griffin Gracey, who were on the front lines and fought for queer and trans liberation and for the LGBTQIA+ movement.”  

Now there are attempts underway to erase that history. As NPR recently reported, “The National Park Service website exploring the history and significance of the Stonewall Uprising has been stripped of any mention of transgender people. The page was also updated to remove the ‘T’ from the previously used acronym ‘LGBTQ+’ — now, referring to the community as either ‘LGB’ or ‘LGBQ.’  References to the word ‘queer’ have also been removed.”  

Clear and present danger 

Having already issued at least six executive orders intended to further marginalize trans people by attempting to deprive them of their rights, the president is hard at work pushing an agenda of bigotry against a group of people that make up fewer than 1% of the population. 

We — and by that I mean the entire LGBTQ+ community and all of our allies — cannot let him succeed. Aside from the show of solidarity for our trans brothers and sisters, supporting them now is also an act of self-preservation. 

Does anyone believe that Trump, and the politicians who follow his lead, will confine their bigotry and hate-mongering to just one segment of our community? I seriously doubt there are many among us who are that naïve or gullible. 

In fact, the president has already shown his disdain for all LGBTQ+ people through actions taken on his first day in office. In rescinding executive orders issued by Joe Biden while in office, Trump, with the stroke of a pen, abolished an order calling for LGBTQ+ people’s health equity, LGBTQ+ data collection and nondiscrimination protections, including in health care. 

Also rescinded were orders that had called for nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQ+ young people in school, which could contribute to stigma and worsened mental health. 

The message is clear: No one who belongs to the LGBTQ+ community can feel safe these days. 

What to do? 

Given the sheer number of actions being taken, it is easy to understand how some folks might feel overwhelmed. But we cannot give in to despair. If we do, the people trying to deprive us of our rights automatically win. 

Instead, we need to rally around each other, and unite in opposition to what is happening. 

One thing each of us can do is use the various social media platforms available to us to start spreading messages of solidarity and mutual support. Fly a rainbow flag and or the transgender flag to signal support for the community. Also contact officeholders in both Washington, D.C. and Lansing to make sure they understand that assaults on the LGBTQ+ community in general, and the trans community specifically, will not be tolerated, ever. 

Then ask our allies to join that effort. As the great, late Dr. Martin Luther King said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” We are all in this together.  

There truly is strength in numbers. If enough of us show we are united in opposition to attacks on trans people, we can make a real difference.  

The time to act is now.  

The ACLU of Michigan saw a glaring need and stepped in to fill a dangerous void last week after new Trump administration policies threatened to leave two Oakland County women to fend for themselves after they alleged that they were fired from a restaurant for speaking up about mistreatment of a transgender co-worker,  who was also terminated from his job.  

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Until recently, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) – the federal agency tasked with investigating employment discrimination and retaliation claims, including those involving gender identity – would have protected the interests of these three fired employees in court. In fact, it did conduct an investigation that determined all three were illegally fired.  

However, after a lawsuit was filed in 2024 against the Oakland County restaurant that had employed them, a new presidential administration was seated, and the EEOC’s efforts to seek justice disappeared. That is because, even though the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that employment discrimination against transgender people violates federal law, the EEOC now contends that continuing to enforce that law would violate President Donald Trump’s executive order directing federal agencies not to promote “gender ideology.”  

As a result, the EEOC has reversed course on protecting the rights of transgender employees— moving to dismiss its claims in the lawsuit against the restaurant as well as in multiple other workplace discrimination cases filed on behalf of transgender employees across the nation. 

The transgender man central to the case, Asher Lucas, had already obtained his own counsel to ensure he would have representation when attempting to protect his rights in court. But the two women who alleged that they were fired for speaking up for him were completely adrift.  

Not anymore.  

Regina Zaviski and Savannah Nurme-Robinson now have the ACLU of Michigan at their side. Last week, we went to federal court, asking that they be allowed to intervene in the case, with us as their attorneys, to make sure their interests are protected. 

Why? 

We’ll let Ms. Nurme-Robinson explain: 

“It is always important to speak up if someone is being harassed or mistreated. But it is even more important now, when the federal government is not just abandoning its obligation to protect the rights of an entire group of people, but is intentionally targeting them in a way that is extremely cruel and harmful. It is also important to stick up for yourself when your rights are being violated, which, with the help of the ACLU, is what we are doing by pursuing this lawsuit.” 

In the face of the EEOC ditching its legal obligations to protect the rights of transgender people and so many other constitutionally questionable actions by the Trump administration, it is important that this message be heard loud and clear: 

We will not remain silent, and we won’t be overwhelmed. Together, we will fight back.  

TAKE ACTION: VOLUNTEER WITH the aclu of michigan

I am a white, cisgender, straight, economically-secure woman, and a U.S. citizen.  I am loaded with privilege to spend.  For those of us with privilege to spend, now is the time (long past, actually).  

Last night, we endured a nearly 80-minute-long speech to the nation that was laden with fearmongering and disinformation in the form of racism, xenophobia, transphobia, and homophobia. It was hateful and dehumanizing to so many people in our richly diverse state and nation.  

As a parent, I reflected on how a President is behaving in a way that I have taught my children is wrong.  Behavior that I’ve helped them address directly on the occasion they’ve seen it inflicted on others or experienced it themselves.  Had my daughters watched that speech, they would have spotted it for what it was: a bully who’s been given an enormous platform to target vulnerable people.  

In the last several years, manufactured culture wars have festered, opening the door to people being targeted on the basis of their gender, race and ideology.  We’ve seen a surge in anti-immigrant, anti-Arab, Islamophobic and antisemitic rhetoric and activity.  We are facing a level of hate that is stunning, yet unsurprising.   

We can and must do better for and with each other.  

The time of “meeting in the middle” has long passed. There is no middle ground when it comes to the dehumanization of entire communities. Agreeing to harm and oppress people because of their race, ethnicity, gender or immigration status is abhorrent and unacceptable.  

When my daughters come to me with something they feel isn’t right, my answer is never, “ignore it” or “wring your hands.”  I ask, “What do you think the right thing to do is?”  

So, Michigan, I ask you, “What is the right thing to do?”  

Protesting is important, but it is not enough.  It’s time to do the hard work – work that takes time, persistence, love, and vision for the multicultural democracy that we want our state and nation to be. 

Here are a few things you can do to start:  

Show up at your local government meetings. Attend your school board, library board, and city council meetings so you are prepared to engage in what’s happening in your community. Where you see the echoes of this presidential administration’s hateful rhetoric or anti-diversity actions cloaked in so-called equality, offer public comment in opposition.  Consider running for local office or support a candidate who reflects your values.   

Call your state and federal legislators, a lot. Your state and local officials are elected by you and need to hear from you about how you want them to address harmful bills. Don’t just call the legislators for whom you voted – you are the constituent of all of the legislators in your district.  Insist that they hear your voice.      

Tell your state and local officials how you want them to use their political power. The silence from many of our political leaders across the partisan spectrum on the Trump administration’s appalling actions has been eerie, and deeply disappointing. Tell them that ALL our rights are inextricably linked to the rights and freedoms of each other and that you need them to speak out on behalf of people most vulnerable to attack in our state.    

Follow and volunteer with organizations that are fighting back or supporting communities under attack. Many organizations are tracking state and federal bills and policies and can help you carry out the above action steps.  Here are some ideas: ACLU of Michigan, Equality Michigan, ACCESS, and MI PODER.

TAKE ACTION: VOLUNTEER WITH THE ACLU OF MICHIGAN

In reaching out to your elected officials, it’s important to remember that you are not asking for much.  You are simply calling on them as federal, state and local officials to abide by the rule of law and uphold our Constitution. However, this is a moment where it is our obligation to exercise our power and breathe meaning into the phrase, “We the People of the United States…”.  Our rights are collective – they are bound to each other.  If we acquiesce to attacks on the rights of one group of people, they will move on to devour the rights of the next group.  

So, Michigan, what are we going to do?