I've covered the transgender issues for the five years. I see only one path forward in the fight for transgender rights, and that's why I'm endorsing Kamala Harris.
There really is no other sane choice. Voting in the fascists to punish the democrats for not being left enough in exchange for the loss of queer rights, loss of women's rights, and concentration camps for immigrants isn't a politically intelligent strategy.
I wholeheartedly agree! Erin is very hardworking, intelligent, writes very well, has great taste in women, and is adorable while fighting for trans lives all at the same time.
Thank you Erin for a very well-stated endorsement! Frankly, I cannot imagine why ANY trans or LGBT person would EVER vote for the Trump/Vance ticket (the vast majority won’t, of course, but sadly I am hearing that there will be a few). Such a voter might as well be voting for their own erasure - which is very much what, from the standpoint of IDs and other laws, the GOP wants to legislatively accomplish in a new term. It is deplorable and extremely sad that our country has come to this. Human rights should NEVER depend on the vagaries of an election cycle. Maybe VP Harris can, and will, pull this off. But it’s way too close for comfort right now. As one commentator said, next Tuesday we will find out what country we really live in.
In the meantime, Erin, all of us deeply appreciate your excellent and timely journalism!!
In 2016, I listened to a person in my gym rail against transgender people. I asked him if he knew anyone who was trans. He responded in the negative. I informed him that I did, and they were twice the person he was. He thought my white hair made me an ally. He was wrong. At 83 I am an outlier in my age cohort, but as we were wont to say in my youth: I've been to two state fairs and a church social. I don't give a rip.
I'm a 75-year old cis straight male, so my heart should skip a beat at the sight of a MAGA hat.
And it does.
With fear.
(I haven't had the chance, but I always want to ask a MAGA-hatted person just when was the "Again?" When was the time America was "great?" Give me time so we can look at the America of the time and see f we really want to go back to that.)
As a Black man, who happens to be trans ... and 67 ... we know what they mean. They just don't want to say it out loud. It isn't even about the LGBTQ+ that they say that. It's about being racist pricks who held all the cards in this country. It's about having lynching parties where they'd gather around in their Sunday best and watch each other do whatever they wanted with impunity. "Make America White Again," is what they mean.
It's pretty sickening how far back they want it to go, but you'd best believe it's when nobody but heterosexual cisgender white men had the only rights afforded people in this country. They don't want to say the quiet part out loud yet, but if those MF's get back in, they will scream it from the rooftops and hang, shoot, or kill anybody who isn't THAT! SMFH
Either we elect the candidates with the best records on LGBTQ+ rights of any Presidential ticket in American history, or we get an insane fascist con man who wants to murder us all, and his sleazeball Nazi understudy. This should not be a hard choice for 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦. Even if you think the Democratic party is broken beyond repair, it is patently obvious that no third-party candidate can win this. If you can't vote for the candidates based on who they are, then vote based on who they're 𝘯𝘰𝘵. Vote to give yourself and everyone else the best possible chance to survive the next four years, by voting for the only ticket that has any chance at all of preventing another Trump Presidency. Vote Harris- lest the consequences of Trump be on 𝘺𝘰𝘶.
Thank you Erin! I have been a psychotherapist largely serving the LGBTQIAS2+community for 35 years in Texas -so I am one of the therapists that Texas wants to turn in loving families for the crime of loving their kids.
My clients are terrified, even if they are not trans, members of their community, friends and family are being stripped of their rights and safety.
My daughter is transfeminine. We had to move her to Pennsylvania due to the trauma being caused for her by Texas vendetta. So now her vote actually may help! But I am furious that my brilliant lovely gentle girl had to leave her home for her safety.
I am fortunate to live in Washington state. It is certainly one of the best places to be at this point in time. But I am very afraid that the supportive laws and positive attitudes here could change in an instant if Harris is not elected. Thank you Erin for keeping us informed and for pointing the way. Now just let the nightmare be over!
There's no comparison, health care and mental healthcare depend on a Harris/Walz win. We can lobby, petition, call, write, speak and protest to our Democratic elected politicians. The opposite is what the cult does!
Neither party is concerned, at all, about any social issues, except as a means to manipulate your vote. Not a single one of them cares about you at all...at all.
Straight-up verbalization of hatred for marginalized groups by MAGA manipulates my voting choice towards the party that is NOT verbally attacking my kid and has a history of supporting human rights!
Kamala Harris does not back from what is law and what she has committed to, and she cannot be bought. I worked on her campaign for district attorney in SF. At a high end fundraiser I attended, a donor came up to her to give her a check. As she took the check, the donor said, "My donation will give me priority access to you if you are elected, right?" Kamala handed the check back and said, "I appreciate your support of my candidacy but I cannot give you any more access to me than I give everyone, and I will not support your priorities unless they are the same as mine. If either of these are expected you can have your check back". Kamala cannot be bought. She also spent 10 minutes at an event talking with my teenage daughter, giving my daughter her full attention. When other adults tried to interrupt, without looking away, told them she would be with them shortly.
I am so looking to living in a country led by a woman and a teacher who have experienced paying for their own health insurance, the dental bills for their kids (step kids have teeth too), and all the experiences us peons have.
Thank you for this. And for the reporting all year long.
I'm down in Texas, and I'm acutely aware of how bad it's likely to get for me in the opening months of a trump presidency. This election almost surely determines if I'm able to stay, or if I have to beg the co-parent of my child to uproot her life and our child's life.
I was disappointed to see Colin Allred's refusal to stand up for trans children in sport, but he, along with the other democrats on my ballot, got my vote. Whatever the sins of the democratic party, there are none that they hold more strongly than the republicans. That balanced against a republican party that's publicly telegraphing the deportation of more than 10 million people, the persecution of ever larger swaths of the queer community and the end of bodily autonomy for all women.
I just... there is no comparison. The parties aren't equal this time. And the outcomes are not neutral for the vast majority of us.
Politics is a dog and pony show. Divide and conquer.
Both parties exist to serve the ruling elite.
Regardless of which one is in the Whitehouse, whatever you don't like is to be blamed on the people who voted for the party in power.
Feeling like a "member" of their party, people vigorously defend their party. Always the blame is placed on, "Those democrats/republicans", rather than the wealthiest white men whom both parties serve.
Meanwhile, they work you to death as they steal you blind.
And yet, we can look at voting records. Mysteriously, women and trans people have human rights in blue states. Mysteriously, democrats keep voting for human rights for women and trans people. Mysteriously, republicans keep voting against them.
Nobody ever said politicians are angels sent from God. But when one party clearly states their intention to harm you, voting against them is the only reasonable response. If the Republicans completely changed their entire platform such that they were no longer evil, I'd gladly vote for them. It's not about the name, it's the policies.
This kind of bothsiderism is either deliberate Republican propaganda or terribly misguided progressive nihilism.
There are two choices on the ballot next week in every race that matters. One choice represents a normal centrist political party, flaws and all. The other represents "Christian" nationalist dictatorship.
I reacted to your egregious misstatement immediately, "as a leading transgender journalist". To begin with, does " transgender journalist" describe a journalist who is merely transgender or a journalist whose stock and trade is the subject of transgender news ? Or is it perhaps both ? More importantly, how do you define "leading"? I think your readers would be the best judges of any sort of title.
In any case, please make the necessary changes at your earliest convenience to reflect the following facts:
1, you are (the) hardest working investigative trans journalist the world over.
2. You are (the) leading trans journalist/investigative reporter of current breaking stories affecting the much maligned and under served transgender population of the states and all English speaking nations.
remember that your loyal fans won't stand for this breech of facts. Your service to our community is worthy of accolades and if there were an award for investigative trans journalisim, and there really should be, you would be the first to receive it.
I think I speak, not just for myself, as a member of this community in saying your work has been an invaluable service to us and we are deeply indebted to you for your ongoing fight for all transgender persons.
There really is no other sane choice. Voting in the fascists to punish the democrats for not being left enough in exchange for the loss of queer rights, loss of women's rights, and concentration camps for immigrants isn't a politically intelligent strategy.
I disagree with your initial statement. You are THE leading journalist on issues related to transgender lives. We appreciate you so much!
I wholeheartedly agree! Erin is very hardworking, intelligent, writes very well, has great taste in women, and is adorable while fighting for trans lives all at the same time.
Thank you Erin for a very well-stated endorsement! Frankly, I cannot imagine why ANY trans or LGBT person would EVER vote for the Trump/Vance ticket (the vast majority won’t, of course, but sadly I am hearing that there will be a few). Such a voter might as well be voting for their own erasure - which is very much what, from the standpoint of IDs and other laws, the GOP wants to legislatively accomplish in a new term. It is deplorable and extremely sad that our country has come to this. Human rights should NEVER depend on the vagaries of an election cycle. Maybe VP Harris can, and will, pull this off. But it’s way too close for comfort right now. As one commentator said, next Tuesday we will find out what country we really live in.
In the meantime, Erin, all of us deeply appreciate your excellent and timely journalism!!
In 2016, I listened to a person in my gym rail against transgender people. I asked him if he knew anyone who was trans. He responded in the negative. I informed him that I did, and they were twice the person he was. He thought my white hair made me an ally. He was wrong. At 83 I am an outlier in my age cohort, but as we were wont to say in my youth: I've been to two state fairs and a church social. I don't give a rip.
I'm a 75-year old cis straight male, so my heart should skip a beat at the sight of a MAGA hat.
And it does.
With fear.
(I haven't had the chance, but I always want to ask a MAGA-hatted person just when was the "Again?" When was the time America was "great?" Give me time so we can look at the America of the time and see f we really want to go back to that.)
As a Black man, who happens to be trans ... and 67 ... we know what they mean. They just don't want to say it out loud. It isn't even about the LGBTQ+ that they say that. It's about being racist pricks who held all the cards in this country. It's about having lynching parties where they'd gather around in their Sunday best and watch each other do whatever they wanted with impunity. "Make America White Again," is what they mean.
It's pretty sickening how far back they want it to go, but you'd best believe it's when nobody but heterosexual cisgender white men had the only rights afforded people in this country. They don't want to say the quiet part out loud yet, but if those MF's get back in, they will scream it from the rooftops and hang, shoot, or kill anybody who isn't THAT! SMFH
"'Back to 1900' is a serviceable summation of the conservatives' goal." - George Will, January 2, 1995
"'When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time." - Maya Angelou
Either we elect the candidates with the best records on LGBTQ+ rights of any Presidential ticket in American history, or we get an insane fascist con man who wants to murder us all, and his sleazeball Nazi understudy. This should not be a hard choice for 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦. Even if you think the Democratic party is broken beyond repair, it is patently obvious that no third-party candidate can win this. If you can't vote for the candidates based on who they are, then vote based on who they're 𝘯𝘰𝘵. Vote to give yourself and everyone else the best possible chance to survive the next four years, by voting for the only ticket that has any chance at all of preventing another Trump Presidency. Vote Harris- lest the consequences of Trump be on 𝘺𝘰𝘶.
Thank you Erin! I have been a psychotherapist largely serving the LGBTQIAS2+community for 35 years in Texas -so I am one of the therapists that Texas wants to turn in loving families for the crime of loving their kids.
My clients are terrified, even if they are not trans, members of their community, friends and family are being stripped of their rights and safety.
My daughter is transfeminine. We had to move her to Pennsylvania due to the trauma being caused for her by Texas vendetta. So now her vote actually may help! But I am furious that my brilliant lovely gentle girl had to leave her home for her safety.
Excellent commentary, Erin! Thank you for all that you do! I talk you up like no one else.
ellie
I am fortunate to live in Washington state. It is certainly one of the best places to be at this point in time. But I am very afraid that the supportive laws and positive attitudes here could change in an instant if Harris is not elected. Thank you Erin for keeping us informed and for pointing the way. Now just let the nightmare be over!
There's no comparison, health care and mental healthcare depend on a Harris/Walz win. We can lobby, petition, call, write, speak and protest to our Democratic elected politicians. The opposite is what the cult does!
Thank you so much for writing this, and for all your coverage of politics and legislation affecting trans people.
Neither party is concerned, at all, about any social issues, except as a means to manipulate your vote. Not a single one of them cares about you at all...at all.
If my vote can buy me a government that isn't actively trying to murder me and my entire demographic, consider me 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘭𝘺 manipulated.
Straight-up verbalization of hatred for marginalized groups by MAGA manipulates my voting choice towards the party that is NOT verbally attacking my kid and has a history of supporting human rights!
So what's the alternative? Do nothing and just let it happen? A small chance, even a very small one, is better than none.
Kamala Harris does not back from what is law and what she has committed to, and she cannot be bought. I worked on her campaign for district attorney in SF. At a high end fundraiser I attended, a donor came up to her to give her a check. As she took the check, the donor said, "My donation will give me priority access to you if you are elected, right?" Kamala handed the check back and said, "I appreciate your support of my candidacy but I cannot give you any more access to me than I give everyone, and I will not support your priorities unless they are the same as mine. If either of these are expected you can have your check back". Kamala cannot be bought. She also spent 10 minutes at an event talking with my teenage daughter, giving my daughter her full attention. When other adults tried to interrupt, without looking away, told them she would be with them shortly.
Voted Harris/Walz!!! She is going to be an amazing president.
I am so looking to living in a country led by a woman and a teacher who have experienced paying for their own health insurance, the dental bills for their kids (step kids have teeth too), and all the experiences us peons have.
Thank you for this. And for the reporting all year long.
I'm down in Texas, and I'm acutely aware of how bad it's likely to get for me in the opening months of a trump presidency. This election almost surely determines if I'm able to stay, or if I have to beg the co-parent of my child to uproot her life and our child's life.
I was disappointed to see Colin Allred's refusal to stand up for trans children in sport, but he, along with the other democrats on my ballot, got my vote. Whatever the sins of the democratic party, there are none that they hold more strongly than the republicans. That balanced against a republican party that's publicly telegraphing the deportation of more than 10 million people, the persecution of ever larger swaths of the queer community and the end of bodily autonomy for all women.
I just... there is no comparison. The parties aren't equal this time. And the outcomes are not neutral for the vast majority of us.
Politics is a dog and pony show. Divide and conquer.
Both parties exist to serve the ruling elite.
Regardless of which one is in the Whitehouse, whatever you don't like is to be blamed on the people who voted for the party in power.
Feeling like a "member" of their party, people vigorously defend their party. Always the blame is placed on, "Those democrats/republicans", rather than the wealthiest white men whom both parties serve.
Meanwhile, they work you to death as they steal you blind.
-weezi-🙏💖🙏💜🙏
And yet, we can look at voting records. Mysteriously, women and trans people have human rights in blue states. Mysteriously, democrats keep voting for human rights for women and trans people. Mysteriously, republicans keep voting against them.
Nobody ever said politicians are angels sent from God. But when one party clearly states their intention to harm you, voting against them is the only reasonable response. If the Republicans completely changed their entire platform such that they were no longer evil, I'd gladly vote for them. It's not about the name, it's the policies.
With all due respect, now is not the time for enlightened centrist "both sides are equally bad" bullshit.
Don't feed the troll.
This kind of bothsiderism is either deliberate Republican propaganda or terribly misguided progressive nihilism.
There are two choices on the ballot next week in every race that matters. One choice represents a normal centrist political party, flaws and all. The other represents "Christian" nationalist dictatorship.
It shouldn't be a hard choice.
As such, please stay home on election day if you intend to vote for any Republicans.
I reacted to your egregious misstatement immediately, "as a leading transgender journalist". To begin with, does " transgender journalist" describe a journalist who is merely transgender or a journalist whose stock and trade is the subject of transgender news ? Or is it perhaps both ? More importantly, how do you define "leading"? I think your readers would be the best judges of any sort of title.
In any case, please make the necessary changes at your earliest convenience to reflect the following facts:
1, you are (the) hardest working investigative trans journalist the world over.
2. You are (the) leading trans journalist/investigative reporter of current breaking stories affecting the much maligned and under served transgender population of the states and all English speaking nations.
remember that your loyal fans won't stand for this breech of facts. Your service to our community is worthy of accolades and if there were an award for investigative trans journalisim, and there really should be, you would be the first to receive it.
I think I speak, not just for myself, as a member of this community in saying your work has been an invaluable service to us and we are deeply indebted to you for your ongoing fight for all transgender persons.
You rock, Erin.