United States Capitol – Photo: lucky-photographer via iStockphoto
In a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), 213 Democratic U.S. representatives, as well as Delegates Stacey Plaskett (Virgin Islands), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D.C.), and Resident Commissioner Pablo José Hernández (Puerto Rico), are demanding that Johnson rebuke Republican lawmakers for using “demonizing and dehumanizing” language when speaking about the transgender community.
“We write to you to strongly condemn the rise in anti-transgender rhetoric, including from members of Congress, and to urge you to ensure members of Congress are following rules of decorum and not using their platforms to demonize and scapegoat any marginalized community, including the transgender community,” the Democrats’ letter reads.
The first signature on the letter is U.S. Rep. Sarah McBride (Del.), the first and only out transgender member of Congress. Other signatories include every member of the Congressional Equality Caucus, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.), Democratic Whip Katherine Clark (Mass.) and House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (Calif.), and members of every major House Democratic ideological caucus.
Only four Democrats — Adam Gray (Calif.), Vicente Gonzalez (Texas), Henry Cuellar (Texas), and Don Davis (N.C.) — did not sign onto the letter. All four represent districts that President Trump won in the 2024 election, and are considered among the most vulnerable Democrats in next year’s midterm elections.
The Democrats signing onto the letter criticized what they called a “dramatic escalation” in anti-transgender rhetoric, referring to “multiple instances” when Republican lawmakers have used slurs to refer to members of the transgender community.
“Despite the responsibility of Committee Chairs and the Speaker of the House to maintain order and ensure members are following the rules of decorum, no action was taken by the Chair or Speaker Pro Tempore in any of these circumstances,” the letter reads.
The letter did not cite specific examples of anti-transgender rhetoric or call out offending members by name. There have, however, been very public instances, such as one in February when U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) repeatedly used an anti-transgender slur during a House Oversight Committee hearing. Former U.S. Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), who has since passed away, objected to Mace’s use of the term as a slur. But Mace interrupted him, shouting: “Tr***y! Tr***y! Tr***y! I don’t really care! You want penises in women’s bathrooms, and I’m not gonna have it!”
When Connolly recommended that Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) counsel Mace on decorum, saying that “a slur is a slur,” Comer said he was “not up to date on my politically correct LGBTQ terminology,” but promised to look into it. No action was taken in response to Mace’s use of the term.
The Democrats backing the letter also expressed concerns over calls by members of Congress to institutionalize all transgender people, comments by members referring to transgender people as mentally ill, and claims that transgender people are inherently violent and should be treated as a national security threat.
Such assertions have led the Trump administration to consider classifying transgender advocates as “violent extremists” and even to suggest restricting transgender people from owning and purchasing firearms.
The Democrats say that the disparaging rhetoric about transgender people takes a toll on the community, making transgender Americans fear for their lives.
The letter notes that, according to the FBI, 463 hate crime incidents in 2024were reportedly motivated by anti-transgender bias — which advocates believe is an undercount — and past studies show that transgender people are four times as likely as their cisgender counterparts to become victims of violence, despite comprising less than 2 percent of the U.S. population.
“As Speaker of the House, you have a responsibility not just to the Republican Conference but to the entire House of Representatives — and the entire country that the House represents,” the letter concludes. “We urge you to condemn the rise in dehumanizing rhetoric targeting the transgender community and to ensure members of your conference are abiding by rules of decorum and not using their platforms to demonize and scapegoat the transgender community, including by ensuring members are not using slurs to refer to the transgender community.”
Mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani has pledged to make New York City a sanctuary city for transgender people.
In a new campaign ad honoring Latina trans activist Sylvia Rivera -- a pioneering figure in the early LGBTQ rights movement -- Mamdani sits at a desk near the Christopher Street Pier in Greenwich Village, recounting Rivera’s life and the pier’s significance as a haven for LGBTQ people in the city.
As photos and video clips of Rivera and other activists flash across the screen, Mamdani recounts her legacy of activism -- from her role in early gay and trans rights demonstrations to founding Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries, which provided food and shelter for homeless trans people, and her push for LGBTQ-inclusive non-discrimination laws.
Two 20-year-old men have been accused of plotting a deadly terrorist attack in suburban Detroit, allegedly targeting several LGBTQ bars after purchasing high-powered weapons, stockpiling ammunition, and practicing at local gun ranges.
According to an FBI affidavit, Mohmed Ali and Majed Mahmoud, both 20 and from Dearborn, allegedly conspired with at least five unnamed individuals and a minor -- identified as "Person 1" -- to carry out an ISIS-inspired shooting attack on Halloween night. Prosecutors say Ali and Person 1 were to execute the assault while the others planned to travel to Syria to join Islamic State forces.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has begun enforcing a new rule requiring airlines to ignore any "X" gender markers on passports and instead enter either "M" or "F" for all passengers.
Announced in a July 7 bulletin, CBP said the rule stems from an earlier executive order by former President Donald Trump aimed at eliminating recognition of transgender identities. The directive took effect on July 14, with airlines given 90 days to comply before full enforcement.
Now in effect, the rule has sparked widespread concern over how it will be implemented in practice.
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