Trump’s Gender Executive Order Hurts All Kids
A special piece from Katie Paris
Today is trans day of visibility, so we wanted to share this op-ed from Red Wine & Blue’s founder Katie Paris. You can also learn more about how to show up for the trans community here.
In my home state of Ohio, a court just ruled that a ban on gender-affirming care for minors is unconstitutional. And in DC, a judge just blocked Trump’s executive order banning transgender service members in the military. These rulings affirm what most Americans already believe: that trans people deserve our support.
As the founder of Red Wine & Blue, a community of over 600,000 diverse suburban women, I hear from so many fellow moms about their concerns: the high cost of housing and child care, the lack of paid leave, school funding, gun violence, bullying, their kids’ mental health. What haven’t I heard even once? “Woke gender ideology.”
In his first few weeks in office, Donald Trump has made it clear that he cares more about fighting a nonsense phrase — “gender ideology extremism” — than any of the long list of very real things keeping parents up at night. He’s signed two executive orders: one declaring that there are only two genders, and one that revokes federal funds from schools that allow transgender students to exist in their classrooms.
Let’s be clear. Every single school in America has kids who are LGBTQ, and they deserve a safe and welcoming place to learn. But every kid benefits from an educational environment that treats everyone with respect. Multiple studies have shown that no matter how they identify, students are safer from bullying and harassment in a school where gay and trans kids are treated with dignity.
While being transgender is a new concept for many, the large majority of Americans think that transgender people deserve protections from discrimination, and 68% support allowing transgender youth to dress in ways that align with their gender identity. The truth is, unlike Donald Trump, most of us aren’t afraid of people we don’t immediately understand.
Contrary to the lies Trump is spreading, these executive orders will hurt all women and girls whether or not they are trans. There is no room for tomboys in Trump’s America. Girls who don’t look stereotypically feminine will get caught up in anti-trans witch hunts, and neighborhood busybodies and bitter parents will demand “gender checks” on girls they think look transgender. It’s already happening in red states where legislators have enacted anti-trans policies. A teenage girl playing high school basketball in Utah faced a tsunami of threats and harassment after an elected official accused her of being transgender on Facebook. The elected official’s reasoning for bullying a teenager? The teenage girl had a “larger physical build.”
Two parents in Utah requested a gender check on a high school swimmer after she beat out their daughters for first place. And these policies open the door for anyone, including random adults and creeps, to accuse young girls of being transgender and put them through the humiliation of a “gender investigation.” Trump’s executive order is vague on how gender investigations will be conducted. But we can look to Florida for an example, where the GOP gave schools the power to conduct genital examinations on students. Imagine the sheer terror of being a 12-year-old girl accused of being transgender and having to undergo a genital exam by an adult you don’t know. These policies don’t protect our children; they make them more susceptible to bullying and abuse by predators.
I’m sick and tired of right-wing extremist groups telling us how to raise our kids and dictating what can be taught in our schools. I want our teachers focused on teaching our kids math, reading, and science — not worried about getting fired for supporting their students. When teachers are scared to do their job, all of our kids suffer.
School is supposed to be a safe place to learn for everyone, but this sends a different message: if you’re different, you aren’t safe. I want my kids going to a school where all students are treated with respect and dignity, not one that tells them that being who you are will make you a target and get your favorite teacher fired for standing up for you.
Gender investigations and genital examinations? Absolutely fucking disgraceful! It’s a dark world we are living in, but people like yourselves make it just that little bit brighter by shedding light on, and pushing back against things like this. So, thank you!
Thank you, Katie. I said to someone recently "We all know someone who is trans, but we may not realize it." I believe this to be true. There seemed to be a pause as that idea was considered.