Trump Will Destroy America: Will Annihilate People of Color Who Don’t Side With Him. He Will Continue to Take Down LGBTQIA+ & Women’s Rights; Abortion Rights; Trans Mental & Physical Health; Employment Protections;
By: Nicole Lashomb*/Editor-in-Chief, The Rainbow Times
It should come as no surprise that another potential Trump presidency looms over the LGBTQ+ community, casting a long shadow of oppressive draconian policies and practices. Organizations like the Human Rights Campaign deemed some of his time in office as “Trump’s Timeline of Hate.”
Before losing to Biden in 2020, Trump was a foe to many and a god to others who upheld similar deep-seated supremacist “values.” I’ve sat down with pro-Trump supporters and have failed to see why they would support such a Hitler-like monster who terrorizes so many, just like the women he has allegedly sexually assaulted. When I’ve asked what the Trump administration policies did to enhance their lives, their healthcare, finances, middle-lower class tax rates, etc., I’ve been met with radio silence. Yet, here we are.
Trump’s one-term presidency eroded countless protections for the queer community and the assault is expected to continue should he assume office again. His time in office was characterized by actions that specifically and repeatedly targeted the LGBTQ+ community.
Moreover, his appointment of extremist conservative judges to the federal judiciary, including three Supreme Court justices, has had a lasting impact on the legal landscape, from the overturning of Roe v. Wade to potentially threatening additional progress toward equality.
Transgender Military Ban
One of his most notable actions was the attempt to ban transgender individuals from serving in the military, despite that trans people join the armed forces in hugely disproportionate numbers when compared to cisgender counterparts.
Healthcare and Employment Protections
Clinically life-saving care to trans patients was rolled back at the federal level, a right that the Obama-era nondiscrimination protections instated. The right of employers to discriminate in hiring practices, employee protections, and serving the public, was often disguised as “religious freedoms.”
Trans Students
Despite expert advice, Trump’s Department of Education and the Department of Justice stripped students’ right to use the restroom that corresponds with the correct gender identity, putting thousands of students at further risk of physical and psychological trauma and suicide.
Conservative Justices’ Appointment
Trump has a long history of appointing judges who are undeniably inexperienced and unqualified to sit on the bench. The Supreme Court is a glaring example of just that. Although the nation’s highest court is supposed to uphold the law and precedents set by it, the three Trump appointments have sided with personal and political opinion, rather than what is dictated by the highest court’s purpose and established law.
Due to these appointments, instead, abortion rights have been stripped, and women–or young girls who’ve been raped–have either been charged as criminals for miscarrying a developing fetus or hunted down for crossing the borders to other states that do allow abortion access. The implications of the hundreds of federal judge appointments by Trump are and should be terrifying, especially if he clenches the White House again.
There is a very real possibility of this extreme authoritarian assuming office again and, if so, history has taught us that the hard-won victories of the past will be another battle of the present. Another Trump term will continue to embolden those who harbor discriminatory hate, giving others an extended license to openly express bigotry and hostility. The normalization of anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric at the highest levels of government has a trickle-down effect, impacting everyday interactions and the overall climate of acceptance in society—leading to threatened emotional and mental anguish and an increase in violence, especially as related to religion, ethnicity, immigrant status, gender, and countless others.
What to do
Those who support LGBTQ+ rights must engage politically and explain to their family and friends exactly what is at stake for not just the queer community but all marginalized groups. Encourage them to get involved too and at the very least inform themselves so they understand exactly who and what they are voting for come November.
One problem I continue to fail to solve is how to reach people who are anti-LGBTQ+ pro-Trump supporters and just don’t care about the perils that continue to plague others less privileged than them. For that, I’m at a loss. If you have ideas or are involved with groups that have started to tackle this already, send a letter to the Editor at editor@therainbowtimesmass.com. I look forward to reading your letters and to publishing them too. I encourage you to submit Op-Eds to us as well about this or any other topic you’d like to share with our readers.
*Nicole Lashomb holds an MBA from Marylhurst University and a BM from the esteemed Crane School of Music/SUNY Potsdam. She can be reached by clicking here.
[Initially published in the February 2024 Issue of The Rainbow Times].
