Happy Valentine's Day
to trans folx, and only trans folx.
Here are some ways to support the trans community right now:
1. Larger, one-time donations to national organizations like the ACLU or the Trevor Project are great, but consider committing to a smaller, recurring donation to a local LGBTQIA+ charity. Recurring donations provide a more stable income stream for organizations, are typically more budget friendly (every bit counts!), and (as a bonus) often lead to deeper engagement with the community/cause.
2. Pay attention to what’s happening in your state. As of this writing, the ACLU is tracking 388 anti-LGBTQIA+ bills at the state level—including in blue states. Get more information about what’s happening in your state here.
3. Contact your reps BY PHONE. Calls have much more impact than emails or petitions. Many organizations offer scripts you can follow, if you don’t love talking on the phone. For national stuff, the website 5calls.org provides scripts and contact numbers for senators. You can find your congressional representative here. Finding state senators and representatives might take a little extra work, but is still easily Google-able and very important.
4. Call your local children’s hospitals and tell them you support continuing care for trans youth.
5. Attend protests and hearings. Trans kids and their families often can’t speak out, as it puts them danger. Also, trans people are a small percentage of the population—around 1.5%. They need cisgender allies to show up and get loud.
6. Put up a flag! (Bonus points for buying it from an actual trans person.) Wear a pin, or a shirt, put a sticker on your car. Anything you do to let trans folks know you’re out there, and that you support them, eases the fear.
What actions have you taken to protect the trans community? Any suggestions I’ve missed? Let me know!
I know you’re tired. I know you’re overwhelmed. I know you’re scared. I am, too. But I promise, doing even one of these things will help—both the community, and you.
Love wins. We will win.