The political playbook that unraveled US transgender rights in the past decade
From the military to healthcare, Trump systematically dismantled Obama-era protections for transgender rights Shelby Chestnut remembers turning on the news in 2016 and hearing something he didn’t expect. Then- attorney general, Loretta Lynch, had just announced a federal lawsuit to block HB2 in North Carolina , otherwise known as the “bathroom bill”. Lynch said the law, which made it illegal for…
The decade-long political playbook that dismantled US transgender rights has been a significant shift from the Obama-era protections. The Obama administration's legal and political efforts aimed at expanding anti-discrimination protections for transgender individuals were largely reversed during Trump's presidency. While Obama's administration had taken steps to protect transgender troops, ensure access to medical care for transgender patients, and provide transgender students with protections under Title IX, Trump's administration largely rescinded these moves.
The backlash against transgender rights was evident in the midterm elections, where initiatives targeting transgender people were passed even in Democratic strongholds. For instance, Kansas and Idaho passed bathroom bill laws without experiencing the public outcry seen in North Carolina during the 2016 amendment. The changing landscape has seen the transgender population shifting from a curious minority in need of protection to an object of ridicule.
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