Donald Trump has pledged severe federal crackdowns on transgender people. I outline steps for preparing for these challenges, sharing stories from trans individuals who are already taking action.
Thank you Erin. As a mom of a trans teenager who would prefer not to live if she lost access to meds, I'm trying to do everything I can to protect her, all without letting her know how scared i am. (She doesn't need another burden.)
I am a Seattle physician and have treated trans patients for 25 years. I run a YouTube channel, "Transgender Medicine Made Simple." I refer to your materials often. May I use the points you bring up in today's post. I will credit you, of course. Linda Gromko MD
Agree change all ID documents you possibly can, but also -- get out of any state like FL or TX where state officials have claimed any use/possession of state issued ID which has been changed for gender affirming reasons, is itself fraud.
I believe so. I know instruction have been issued to do no further changes of ID documents on the basis none are legitimate -- it certainly has clear implications for the use of such being inherently fraudulent in their eyes. The policy certainly does conflict with ID issued by other states.
Hey Erin! Thanks for all of the work that you do! It is so helpful. I was wondering if you knew anything about repercussions with having the X gender marker on passports? I just updated my passport last year and I have the X gender designation. Now I am wondering what that means going forward. Can the Trump administration target me if I have a X designation on my passport?? Additionally for me, my state doesn't allow X gender markers on licenses so my documentation doesn't match. Is it worth the hassle of trying to align my passport for clear designation? Or does that even matter because I am already in the state departments system of having been issued a passport with an X designator at one point and time??
I have a similar question, as I have already updated my driver’s license but need to update my passport. My driver’s license has a X marker, but I think it is most strategic for me to have an F marker on my passport because I am currently read as female and I might need to travel to China to see relatives, and China doesn’t legally recognize nonbinary genders as far as I know. Would the discrepancy between the two IDs cause an issue?
Personally, I'd pick either M or F. "X" is a glaring red flag that could target your documentation for "correction" or revocation. I would try to make it harder for them to find you.
FAIW, I don't know that having an "X" puts you PERMANENTLY on their radar. You might try changing it to an M or F. The witch hunters may not look for former "X" registrants, and former gender marker status might not even be preserved in their records.
Another reason you might not want the "X" is that Trumpo wants to request passage of a bill declaring M and F to be the only legitimate gender markers, so having an "X" could, on its face, invalidate your ID, even if the administration hasn't caught up with you yet. For instance, if you get pulled over and present a DL with an "X," the cop might cite you for driving without a valid driver's license, and that's at a minimum.
This really sucks, because I spent about a week in my state lobbying our legislature for the "X" option on driver's licenses. And we won. However, a federal law would undo that.
Thank you Erin for a very timely article. In addition to the adverse scenarios proposed here, one other scenario - admittedly an extreme one - to consider is the possibility of trans people being declared “pornographic” (as per Project 2025j, and then a national emergency against “porn/immorality” (again as per Project 2025), which would then justify the arrest/detention of trans people and seizure of their assets. Something like this happened to Jewish people in Nazi Germany. Presidents do have the power to declare national emergencies, and we have just witnessed a staggering amount of money spent on ads targeting trans people, so I don’t think this is that farfetched.
I think in the short-to-moderate time horizon, the best and only realistic option for many people is to relocate from red states to deep blue states, especially those that have already announced that they will counter the Trump administration. And then hope that these states will follow through. Given the Democrats tepid (at best) response to the GOP onslaught during the campaign, we can be forgiven for feeling a little skeptical that our states will really protect.
Erin - if you’re reading this, I think a good idea would be for a new Risk Assessment Map that incorporates how realistically and with how much motivation a given blue state could be expected to really protect.
I moved myself and my daughter back to the deep blue state of my birth. I was hoping she’d be out of reach here. I figure maybe it bought us some time. I have no idea what to do next. I will not give up, I can’t. We can’t.
One thing I've mentioned on a couple different posts and reddit is we should see about starting a church. We just need a LGBTQ plus friendly ordained person to help head it.
The church would be for love and acceptance of any LGBTQ plus person, anybody who supports a woman's right to their body their choice and to a family's right to decide the best health care for their family.
Then when the feds make a rule against any of those that we believe in we can use the religious exemption, "it goes against our believes," like the morons at Chick-fil-A and Hobby Lobby use.
I also asked my PC P if it's possible to get a 3 or 6 months supply of estrogen at 1 time. The pharmacy is filling it as I type this so I'll provide an update when I pick up my prescription this week to see if I get more than one vial.
The Metropolitan Community Church (aka MCC) was created before Stonewall by the LGBTQIA+ community. Perhaps there is one in your area. Also, there are some other Christian denominations that support the community. The Universalist Unitarians believe in the dignity of all humanity. They do a lot of good work!
I was off work recovering from surgery and today was first day back.
I had a couple different co-workers reach out to me to see how I was doing. Not just the surgery and recovery but the election. They asked what they could do to help.
The 2 things I mentioned were
1) when you get the chance let people know you work with a transgender person, live in a building with a transgender person or just interact with one on a weekly basis. So they can help show people hat we are human. Not boogie men.
2) If they have any extra resources ask them to try and donate
Frankly right now I am terrified of losing access to the surgeries that I have been waiting for years for and are now coming up over the next 2 years. I am prepared to completely wipe out my savings if it comes down to it, something I shouldn't even have to consider, since at my age, it means I likely wouldn't ever be able to retire. Not that that ever looked particularly likely given the state of things.
Ive been lucky enough that stealth is an option since HRT has been kind to me, but its not something that I can rely on with out having had FFS yet, leaving me clocky AF to anyone who is paying close enough attention.
I am working on making sure that community networks are solid in the mean time.
Also, of been on hrt for awhile see if your Pcp will.prescribe 23, 6 or 12 mnth dosage so not stuck with refilling every 30 days. If that is something you want to do.
Mother of a trans man and chosen family to MANY trans folks. If a local support organization doesn’t exist in your area, consider creating one. I moved from a blue state to a red state to live closer to my elderly parents. Unfortunately, this state has already enacted bans on gender affirming care for trans minors and the enforced outing of trans kids in public schools. I am starting to meet and make community with other local parents and trans folks. I’m also going to gift subscriptions to Erin in the Morning to some of my trans friends.
does anyone know of any ways for people who live in a blue state and have room in their house to join with a family looking to move? like if someone owns a house but is struggling to pay bills and would like to join forces with someone/people moving to a blue state, that they could do that? hard to imagine it exists, but i am guessing there are people in this situation.
Just a reminder to people ages 18-25 who want to update their gender with Social Security to "male:" They will need to register with Selective Service once they have changed their gender marker. Not registering with Selective Service can mean not being eligible for federal loans (such as student loans) and government jobs. It IS possible to (somewhat easily) get a letter of exemption from Selective Service on the basis of being trans, but who knows how easy that process will be moving forward. For now, it is much easier just to register, but one has to register before age 26.
I can NOT personally recommend using this site as I've never used it, but I was told about it by someone I trust when I asked them about what options exist if there are restrictions.
I do NOT recommend DIY HRT, these medications are powerful and incorrect dosages can have serious consequences. If you've never self injected before, that also carries risk and you should know how to do so and what signs to look out for. Please be careful and always seek medical care from trained professionals and get lab work to ensure what you are doing is safe.
I've been on HRT for over 7 years. In that time I've used multiple different medication types and dosages all adjusted with the help of a doctor that specializes in transgender care (I'm fortunate in that regard). Even recently I had to adjust injection E due to changes in my physiology. So not even a once and done with dosages and labs should be considered final for extended durations and definitely not your whole life.
As a trans immigrant, who has no pathway to naturalization in the next decade, and facing real harm if I go back it sucks that most of these options aren't available to me. I'm very scared.
Thanks so much for launching this conversation, Erin. I wonder if I can ask you to follow up with thoughts (your own, readers,' others with skin in the NB game) on the X gender marker at this moment. I have a trans femme teen and also an NB teen, and we live in NYC. So I expect the state and city to stay as friendly as possible for as long as possible and yet ... is having an X marker on birth certificate, state ID, and even passport a flag inviting trouble down the road? My NB 14 yo is also neurodiverse and so opposed to the idea of stealth it would be a hard conversation to have. But I find myself wondering, as I await their corrected birth certificates (with X for my NB, because NYS allows that) and contemplate new passports, if choosing the X marker that actually reflects their agender identity defeats the purpose of having documents that match their gender expression. Curious to hear from others, how you weigh safety against authentic gender identity expression and ownership, when it comes to paperwork.
I would love some guidance about this as well. I have the X gender marker on my Real ID driver's license and my passport book, but not my passport card. When I applied to update both forms of passport with the X gender marker (shortly after the option was made available) I received an updated passport book and an incorrect passport card along with a letter explaining that the machines used to print the cards were not yet able to add the X and that I should try again the following year.
I was just filling out the form to request a corrected passport card when I started reading terrifying things from people speculating that having the X gender marker on any ID might be/become dangerous. So now I don't know what to do about having two different genders on the two different forms of my US passport. Is that doubly dangerous than having the X in the first place?
It's also worth noting that the Social Security department isn't yet able to offer the X gender marker - and that obviously isn't going to happen now - so those of us who updated to the X marker on other IDs still have that contradictory marker associated with their Social Security number.
We Need to form LGBTQ Self-defense corps (militia?). These criminals will not play by the rules, so we need to protect ourselves. I am seeing what I can do in Houston to enable this, a lot of ex-military are in our community, which should make this possible.
It would take only one interaction with law enforcement and your entire idea falls apart with every member in the morgue. Let’s not go into this wildly absurd discussion.
For trans people who are also naturalized citizens, updating their certificate of naturalization is another crucial federal document. Current requirements just ask for court ordered name change and proof of gender change on an ID (like state ID or passport) but this could become MUCH more difficult under the Trump administration since the process is under federal control. My husband just applied to update his naturalization papers this past week.
Thank you Erin. As a mom of a trans teenager who would prefer not to live if she lost access to meds, I'm trying to do everything I can to protect her, all without letting her know how scared i am. (She doesn't need another burden.)
I’m in the same boat.
I am a Seattle physician and have treated trans patients for 25 years. I run a YouTube channel, "Transgender Medicine Made Simple." I refer to your materials often. May I use the points you bring up in today's post. I will credit you, of course. Linda Gromko MD
Agree change all ID documents you possibly can, but also -- get out of any state like FL or TX where state officials have claimed any use/possession of state issued ID which has been changed for gender affirming reasons, is itself fraud.
Are you certain they're threatening "fraud" charges in Texas too?
I believe so. I know instruction have been issued to do no further changes of ID documents on the basis none are legitimate -- it certainly has clear implications for the use of such being inherently fraudulent in their eyes. The policy certainly does conflict with ID issued by other states.
Hey Erin! Thanks for all of the work that you do! It is so helpful. I was wondering if you knew anything about repercussions with having the X gender marker on passports? I just updated my passport last year and I have the X gender designation. Now I am wondering what that means going forward. Can the Trump administration target me if I have a X designation on my passport?? Additionally for me, my state doesn't allow X gender markers on licenses so my documentation doesn't match. Is it worth the hassle of trying to align my passport for clear designation? Or does that even matter because I am already in the state departments system of having been issued a passport with an X designator at one point and time??
I have a similar question, as I have already updated my driver’s license but need to update my passport. My driver’s license has a X marker, but I think it is most strategic for me to have an F marker on my passport because I am currently read as female and I might need to travel to China to see relatives, and China doesn’t legally recognize nonbinary genders as far as I know. Would the discrepancy between the two IDs cause an issue?
Personally, I'd pick either M or F. "X" is a glaring red flag that could target your documentation for "correction" or revocation. I would try to make it harder for them to find you.
Agreed, I chose 'X' when I updated my voter registration this year and now think it was probably a bad idea.
FAIW, I don't know that having an "X" puts you PERMANENTLY on their radar. You might try changing it to an M or F. The witch hunters may not look for former "X" registrants, and former gender marker status might not even be preserved in their records.
Another reason you might not want the "X" is that Trumpo wants to request passage of a bill declaring M and F to be the only legitimate gender markers, so having an "X" could, on its face, invalidate your ID, even if the administration hasn't caught up with you yet. For instance, if you get pulled over and present a DL with an "X," the cop might cite you for driving without a valid driver's license, and that's at a minimum.
This really sucks, because I spent about a week in my state lobbying our legislature for the "X" option on driver's licenses. And we won. However, a federal law would undo that.
Thank you Erin for a very timely article. In addition to the adverse scenarios proposed here, one other scenario - admittedly an extreme one - to consider is the possibility of trans people being declared “pornographic” (as per Project 2025j, and then a national emergency against “porn/immorality” (again as per Project 2025), which would then justify the arrest/detention of trans people and seizure of their assets. Something like this happened to Jewish people in Nazi Germany. Presidents do have the power to declare national emergencies, and we have just witnessed a staggering amount of money spent on ads targeting trans people, so I don’t think this is that farfetched.
I think in the short-to-moderate time horizon, the best and only realistic option for many people is to relocate from red states to deep blue states, especially those that have already announced that they will counter the Trump administration. And then hope that these states will follow through. Given the Democrats tepid (at best) response to the GOP onslaught during the campaign, we can be forgiven for feeling a little skeptical that our states will really protect.
Erin - if you’re reading this, I think a good idea would be for a new Risk Assessment Map that incorporates how realistically and with how much motivation a given blue state could be expected to really protect.
I moved myself and my daughter back to the deep blue state of my birth. I was hoping she’d be out of reach here. I figure maybe it bought us some time. I have no idea what to do next. I will not give up, I can’t. We can’t.
One thing I've mentioned on a couple different posts and reddit is we should see about starting a church. We just need a LGBTQ plus friendly ordained person to help head it.
The church would be for love and acceptance of any LGBTQ plus person, anybody who supports a woman's right to their body their choice and to a family's right to decide the best health care for their family.
Then when the feds make a rule against any of those that we believe in we can use the religious exemption, "it goes against our believes," like the morons at Chick-fil-A and Hobby Lobby use.
I also asked my PC P if it's possible to get a 3 or 6 months supply of estrogen at 1 time. The pharmacy is filling it as I type this so I'll provide an update when I pick up my prescription this week to see if I get more than one vial.
The Metropolitan Community Church (aka MCC) was created before Stonewall by the LGBTQIA+ community. Perhaps there is one in your area. Also, there are some other Christian denominations that support the community. The Universalist Unitarians believe in the dignity of all humanity. They do a lot of good work!
I was off work recovering from surgery and today was first day back.
I had a couple different co-workers reach out to me to see how I was doing. Not just the surgery and recovery but the election. They asked what they could do to help.
The 2 things I mentioned were
1) when you get the chance let people know you work with a transgender person, live in a building with a transgender person or just interact with one on a weekly basis. So they can help show people hat we are human. Not boogie men.
2) If they have any extra resources ask them to try and donate
to pflag, HRC and Transgender Law Center.
Can anyone think of anything to add to the above?
Amen to the church idea! 🙌
Frankly right now I am terrified of losing access to the surgeries that I have been waiting for years for and are now coming up over the next 2 years. I am prepared to completely wipe out my savings if it comes down to it, something I shouldn't even have to consider, since at my age, it means I likely wouldn't ever be able to retire. Not that that ever looked particularly likely given the state of things.
Ive been lucky enough that stealth is an option since HRT has been kind to me, but its not something that I can rely on with out having had FFS yet, leaving me clocky AF to anyone who is paying close enough attention.
I am working on making sure that community networks are solid in the mean time.
Check out these for possible help.
https://queerdoc.com/funding-trans-healthcare-money-for-gender-care/
https://www.pointofpride.org/annual-transgender-surgery-fund
https://www.genderbands.org/grants
Also, of been on hrt for awhile see if your Pcp will.prescribe 23, 6 or 12 mnth dosage so not stuck with refilling every 30 days. If that is something you want to do.
Mother of a trans man and chosen family to MANY trans folks. If a local support organization doesn’t exist in your area, consider creating one. I moved from a blue state to a red state to live closer to my elderly parents. Unfortunately, this state has already enacted bans on gender affirming care for trans minors and the enforced outing of trans kids in public schools. I am starting to meet and make community with other local parents and trans folks. I’m also going to gift subscriptions to Erin in the Morning to some of my trans friends.
Is there a PFLAG chapter near you? They are active in all 50 states and are a wonderful support group.
does anyone know of any ways for people who live in a blue state and have room in their house to join with a family looking to move? like if someone owns a house but is struggling to pay bills and would like to join forces with someone/people moving to a blue state, that they could do that? hard to imagine it exists, but i am guessing there are people in this situation.
Hi Erin, thank you so much for all that you do.
Just a reminder to people ages 18-25 who want to update their gender with Social Security to "male:" They will need to register with Selective Service once they have changed their gender marker. Not registering with Selective Service can mean not being eligible for federal loans (such as student loans) and government jobs. It IS possible to (somewhat easily) get a letter of exemption from Selective Service on the basis of being trans, but who knows how easy that process will be moving forward. For now, it is much easier just to register, but one has to register before age 26.
For anyone wondering about where to find HRT options if there is a crack down on access.
https://hrtcafe.net/
I can NOT personally recommend using this site as I've never used it, but I was told about it by someone I trust when I asked them about what options exist if there are restrictions.
I do NOT recommend DIY HRT, these medications are powerful and incorrect dosages can have serious consequences. If you've never self injected before, that also carries risk and you should know how to do so and what signs to look out for. Please be careful and always seek medical care from trained professionals and get lab work to ensure what you are doing is safe.
I've been on HRT for over 7 years. In that time I've used multiple different medication types and dosages all adjusted with the help of a doctor that specializes in transgender care (I'm fortunate in that regard). Even recently I had to adjust injection E due to changes in my physiology. So not even a once and done with dosages and labs should be considered final for extended durations and definitely not your whole life.
As a trans immigrant, who has no pathway to naturalization in the next decade, and facing real harm if I go back it sucks that most of these options aren't available to me. I'm very scared.
Thanks so much for launching this conversation, Erin. I wonder if I can ask you to follow up with thoughts (your own, readers,' others with skin in the NB game) on the X gender marker at this moment. I have a trans femme teen and also an NB teen, and we live in NYC. So I expect the state and city to stay as friendly as possible for as long as possible and yet ... is having an X marker on birth certificate, state ID, and even passport a flag inviting trouble down the road? My NB 14 yo is also neurodiverse and so opposed to the idea of stealth it would be a hard conversation to have. But I find myself wondering, as I await their corrected birth certificates (with X for my NB, because NYS allows that) and contemplate new passports, if choosing the X marker that actually reflects their agender identity defeats the purpose of having documents that match their gender expression. Curious to hear from others, how you weigh safety against authentic gender identity expression and ownership, when it comes to paperwork.
I would love some guidance about this as well. I have the X gender marker on my Real ID driver's license and my passport book, but not my passport card. When I applied to update both forms of passport with the X gender marker (shortly after the option was made available) I received an updated passport book and an incorrect passport card along with a letter explaining that the machines used to print the cards were not yet able to add the X and that I should try again the following year.
I was just filling out the form to request a corrected passport card when I started reading terrifying things from people speculating that having the X gender marker on any ID might be/become dangerous. So now I don't know what to do about having two different genders on the two different forms of my US passport. Is that doubly dangerous than having the X in the first place?
It's also worth noting that the Social Security department isn't yet able to offer the X gender marker - and that obviously isn't going to happen now - so those of us who updated to the X marker on other IDs still have that contradictory marker associated with their Social Security number.
We Need to form LGBTQ Self-defense corps (militia?). These criminals will not play by the rules, so we need to protect ourselves. I am seeing what I can do in Houston to enable this, a lot of ex-military are in our community, which should make this possible.
It would take only one interaction with law enforcement and your entire idea falls apart with every member in the morgue. Let’s not go into this wildly absurd discussion.
For trans people who are also naturalized citizens, updating their certificate of naturalization is another crucial federal document. Current requirements just ask for court ordered name change and proof of gender change on an ID (like state ID or passport) but this could become MUCH more difficult under the Trump administration since the process is under federal control. My husband just applied to update his naturalization papers this past week.