Sound and Fury: Some Initial Thoughts on Trump's Scary Anti-Trans Executive Orders

UPDATE (1/28/2024): Over the weekend, I was able to confirm reports that the Trump administration has expanded the use of a system that allows employees to see if a person applying for a passport renewal has EVER had a passport with a different gender marker. In light of this development, I recommend that trans people avoid even otherwise routine passport renewals until there is more clarity about the administration’s updated policies, an established timeline for the return of documents being held by the State Department, and a chance for litigation to move forward. If you are trans and have NEVER held a passport under a different gender market AND you have amended your birth certificate AND the document is not marked as amended, it is likely safe to apply for a brand new passport. More context in my original piece below:

The Trump administration’s flurry of executive orders targeting trans rights is meant to scare you. It’s designed to make you doubt yourself, to push you into the shadows, to make you believe that living your truth isn’t worth the trouble. The goal is as cruel as it is simple: they want you to give up.

But here’s the thing about fear—it loses its power the moment you refuse to let it control you. Every morning you get out of bed, you’re resisting their agenda. Every time you smile, laugh, and live authentically, you’re a reminder that their hatred cannot erase you. That’s what they can’t stand. And that’s why you have to keep going.

Still, we can’t ignore the reality of what’s happening. There’s no sugarcoating the fact that these attacks are meant to make your life harder. Things are not ok for trans people in America right now, and they will likely not be better tomorrow, or in a week, or in a month. Sometimes all you can do is make sure that your body is so tired from physical exertion that your mind only has space for food and water and rest.

If you’re navigating the bureaucratic hurdles of updating your documents, this moment requires extra caution. Federal systems feel particularly precarious. Gender marker changes on passports and Social Security cards are in flux, and for now, it’s best to avoid surrendering or mailing in any original documents. Once something is lost in this process, it’s difficult—and sometimes impossible—to replace. If you do want to try changing something, do it in person, in the friendliest location you can reach.

That said, all is not lost. The Trump administration has indicated that it does not currently plan to invalidate existing identification held by trans people. And in most states, you can still update the gender marker on your driver’s license. This small victory might not feel like much, but it’s worth pursuing where you can.

While the administration is targeting options like “X” gender markers on federal IDs, those rights were established through lawsuits. This attempt to strip them away will result in new legal battles. These systems are imperfect, but they still exist. If you have that marker on your identification, you should still be able to board a plane or travel.

One right remains entirely intact, even under this storm of executive orders: your ability to change your name. Whether it’s on your passport, your Social Security card, or anywhere else, this process hasn’t changed—and it matters. In many ways, your name and photo are far more significant than your gender marker. I spent years with the wrong gender marker on my documents, and nobody ever questioned it. Most people, I’ve found, are either kind or too polite to cause a scene. It’s a small reminder that the fear these policies are meant to create often outweighs the reality.

If this moment feels overwhelming, it helps to remember the bigger picture. Politics is thermostatic—it swings between expansion and contraction. We’ve just lived through a period of rapid growth in trans visibility and access to care, and this backlash is a reaction to that progress. It’s painful, but it’s also temporary. The door to trans existence can’t close completely. People know what it means to transition; they’ve seen us, spoken with us, worked alongside us. That can’t be undone. This moment of fear will pass, just as others have before.

Through it all, hold onto your principles. It’s tempting to fight fire with fire, to meet cruelty with cruelty, but that’s not how we win. We win by being ourselves—unapologetically, unmistakably ourselves. We win by building a world where kindness, authenticity, and community matter more than fear or hate.

The storm we’re in now is designed to break you, but it won’t. You are stronger than their policies, stronger than their hatred. Every step forward, no matter how small, is a step they can never take away from you. Document your victories, celebrate your progress, and remember: every day you choose to live as yourself is a triumph.

If you’re out and living your life, you’ve fought your fight and won. You can’t fight every fight for everyone else. You deserve to enjoy everything that you worked for. If you’re not out yet, that’s ok. Remember the generations of people before you have have found a way to live authentically in the face of ridicule or worse, and never stop pushing at the door. It’s still worth it.

You’re still worth it.

You’re here, and that’s what matters. The rest is just noise.