Ariel Millennium Thornton @arielmt@computerfairi.es

hi thanks for clicking on what is surely one of the least appealing CWs i have ever written

i'm surely preaching to the choir here, but if you care about trans people, you have to understand that we're not much more popular with democratic voters than we are with republicans. i would direct your attention to washington state proposal I-638, banning transfem schoolchildren from participating in girls' sports, which passed with a handy 56%. it's a bad law and will surely be challenged, but my point is that it passed. voters wanted this, or at least were not given sufficient reason to oppose it. many similar measures passed across the country

"but kassy," you might say. "this only affects kids, and you know trans youth are a very unpopular issue in america." first of all, kids are humans with basic rights too, and it's disgusting how much they're used as political bargaining chips in this country simply because they can't advocate for themselves. second, i think you need to go read the proposal and have a good long think about what this ban actually entails. hint: physical inspection of children's bodies is involved

also, you know this is a foot in the door, right? this is a way to make voters on both sides of the political spectrum comfortable with the idea of excluding transfems from women's spaces (it's often only transfems but that's a separate topic), and comfortable with using othering and transphobic language to talk about us (please don't use "biologically male" in reference to trans girls, for example)

make no mistake, the midterms were overall a great success. the democratic party is by far the lesser of the two evils - they're easier to organize against, more receptive to pressure, and slightly less likely to e.g. call the national guard on a peaceful protest, not to mention willing to actually field trans candidates sometimes. the blue wave is a good start! but it is only a start. much of the democratic party will still throw us trans folks under the bus for political reasons, and the average voter will not care

so i'm asking you, any cis person reading this who wants to be an ally to the cause of trans rights: please don't be the average voter. get educated, and do what you can to get other people educated. if a measure like this passed where you live or has any risk of passing, call your representatives in your state or local government and voice your displeasure. if you're feeling really motivated, maybe see about joining an activist group. you have to help us try to protect the rights of trans children, because neither establishment party is willing to. and now, with a new wave of democrats entering office, is the best time for it: remind them who they work for and what we want, and don't let them get comfortable compromising on the rights of some of the country's most vulnerable populations