We recently asked people in the BuzzFeed Community who identify as transgender or who are the parents of someone who identifies as trans to tell us about their concerns heading into a second Trump presidency. The responses we received reflected both fear and helplessness. Here are a few of them:
1. "I fear we will all lose our healthcare."
"Testosterone is poison for me, so I don't expect to live through Trump's second term."
—Anonymous
2. "I'm graduating from high school this year, and I just want to know that I'm going to be safe in college no matter where I go."
"For any of my trans siblings out there, please, please, please stay as safe as you possibly can. Now is the time to have a community that we can rely on. Make friends with other trans people. Talk to someone. Have hope. Please."
—Anonymous
3. "As a transgender person who just recently turned 18 and was forbidden by my parents to transition as a minor, I am terrified my transition will be cut off before it can even begin."
"I live in a deep blue state, and my heart goes out to my trans siblings in red states. However, despite how lucky I am to live where I do, I'm worried it will mean nothing if Trump wields his federal power to keep people from transitioning."
—Anonymous
4. "What worries me most is the dark period in our country's history in which hate and aggression toward trans people is not only rampant but encouraged."
5. "My parents pushed me to get a non-driving state ID if my name-change and gender change get rolled back on a federal level."
"I worry about being able to get hormones in Montana, where I go to school. Before Inauguration Day, I'm finalizing the name change on my last few non-governmental documents, like credit cards. I'm doing all of this because of the sinking feeling that I'm running out of time."
—Anonymous
6. "My spouse is trans, and I worry about them constantly."
"I worry most about violence against them. Neither gendered bathroom option feels safe for them anymore. I get severe anxiety because I know that I can't protect them from everything or be there constantly to shield them from hate. Other than their safety, I also worry about their mental health. Continually being labeled as mentally ill by the public and government officials would take its toll on anyone's well-being. My partner had far better mental health before Trump ever entered politics.
I honestly am terrified that there will be a time when it's illegal to be trans in certain states; as our governor is a Republican, this could be a real possibility for us. I also fear that if it did come to that, our family members would give us up. Our families have no idea the amount of stress and anxiety we are under because of policies that will likely be put in place by the person they voted to support. My partner's family chose a stranger billionaire over their kid. How are we supposed to be safe?!
We are looking into getting our wills drawn up and possibly moving to a safer state. We are lucky to even have that option. I have other trans friends who can't afford to move from states like Florida. Of course, I worry for the entire trans community, too, especially trans women of color, who always get the brunt of the violence and hatred. Trans people are humans just like the rest of us, and they deserve love and support."
—Anonymous
7. "That people, especially children, who identify as transgender will have worse mental health and higher cases of dying by suicide."
—Anonymous
8. "I grew up in the US and transitioned when I was 15."
"My parents were supportive, and I was able to medically transition. I have friends whose families were not supportive, and I spent most of my teenage years not knowing if they would be alive when I woke up the next day.
It's not just about him [Trump], it's what he stands for. It's not just what he COULD do when he's in power; it's the fact that tens of millions of people have decided that we don't get to have equal rights. He's given them explicit permission to discriminate against us. I'm scared for all the kids who were already depressed and now have statistical evidence that the majority of Americans don't care if they live or die."
—Anonymous
9. "I am seen as a woman by everyone, including my parents and even my conservative MAGA-supporting brother..."
10. "I'm trans and just joining the job market."
"I'm already worried I won't be able to find a job in my field, never mind having to go back into the closet for it. I'm afraid people will be encouraged to discriminate against me and my trans friends because Trump has made it okay to hate others who don't do anything wrong or impact others' lives in any way.
Let me use whatever bathroom I want! Do you really care what my genitals look like? Don't you think that's creepy? People who would have no trouble learning they/them pronouns and are just scared of the unknown are going to become full-blown transphobes because they are encouraged to hate instead of love."
—Anonymous
11. "I am viscerally scared that my access to gender-affirming hormone therapy may be severed."
12. "Since Trump won the election and spent a ridiculous amount of money on anti-trans propaganda, I have seen the level of hate and cyberbullying increase dramatically."
"I received over 370 hate comments on one of my recent TikTok videos, including death threats. All I was doing in the video was hiking. I fear how this cyberbullying will turn into real-life violence for me and the trans community as a whole."
—Anonymous
13. "I worry about my wife losing her job and the continued harassment and discrimination."
"Nothing feels safe anymore. Every place we go, we've labeled safe or unsafe for us. We have had people take videos of us eating in a restaurant, and we have had people stalk us and openly threaten violence. The workplace is the worst, though, especially in the South. Being faced with open hate speech and treated like garbage has been a problem. And the 'Trumpers' are getting worse."
—Anonymous
14. "As part of my non-governmental career, I am required to have a federal security clearance."
"Because of the stance taken by 47 [Donald Trump] and his cabinet regarding transgender people, I am terrified they are going to publicly declare us transgender people — or otherwise gender non-conforming people — as enemies of the state. That would mean they could yank my clearance, therefore ending my 25-year career in the telecommunications industry."
—Marie Willa, Transgender Woman Extraordinaire
15. "I worked so hard to become the person I am today and continue to work hard to make my life one that's worth experiencing..."
16. "As a parent, I want high-quality, informed healthcare for my transgender teen."
"I am concerned that activists are pushing medical providers on both sides of the aisle. I would also prefer that politicians talk less about the transgender community, especially kids. Why keep targeting an already very marginalized and vulnerable group?"
—Anonymous
17. "Even though I live in a very blue state and I am lucky enough to have an insurance provider with excellent coverage for gender-affirming care, I am honestly really scared to begin my medical transition during Trump's administration."
"I've noticed a lot of pop-up events near me to try and help people file paperwork for name and gender changes on their IDs and passports before Trump takes office. My trans friends in red states are considering relocating.
I used to live in the Midwest and experienced harassment for my identity daily, leaving me with suicidal ideation, reoccurring nightmares, and severe anxiety. I'm sure experiences like mine will only become more prevalent as a result of Trump's fearmongering and normalized hate speech against the trans community."
—Anonymous
18. "I am dreading the next four years."
19. "I'm 45 and spent my whole life in the closet in a deep red state."
"I've only just felt safe enough to come out and start my transition from female to male when my family finally moved out of the South to a blue state. I'm safe and receiving care for now, but I'm terrified that the bans on affirming care in some red states will be made national.
Some of them are written in ways that deny care to adults and children, and there are rumblings on the right to take them further and ban all care and transition processes, like changes to identity paperwork. I'm finally feeling like I'm becoming who I'm supposed to be, and I don't know if I'd survive having that taken away."
—Anonymous
20. "I am a transgender adult who grew up in Florida but now lives in a trans-friendly state."
"I work in local government now, but I used to work at the federal level. My future job options have been severely narrowed. I love government work and want to keep providing my service in natural sciences. If I still worked under the Department of Defense as I used to, I would be fired under the upcoming transgender military ban. In fact, in any federal position, I can expect to have any treatment related to my transition denied. And if my health insurance wouldn't deny me, a provider likely would.
I worry that bans on federal funding for treatment could ripple into my current insurance provider as they also cover federal employees. I worry the hospital I'm waiting to have my surgery at will cancel surgeries for treatment of gender dysphoria before I have mine, or worse, in the weeks after my surgery, when I need care with drains or stitching, I could get denied, then.
I used to have my pronouns on my email signature; I've removed them since Trump won. I'm terrified that trans people are so blatantly being portrayed as 'boogeymen.' I know people waiting to leave Florida until they get their documents back, but they're being held up. Even before, when you could change the gender marker on your birth certificate, they were trying every way to stop it.
I'm scared to travel to where I grew up. I know people who are working to leave the country. I try to have hope, but I don't know if I'm being too optimistic. I'm seeing the general opinion on transgender people flip negatively, and so much misinformation. I'm scared. I don't want to be hurt."
—Anonymous
21. And finally, "How dare some moron who wouldn't know to put Neosporin under his Band-Aid override what a trained medical professional, parents, and a child have decided is in their child's best interest?"
"More and more worse decisions are on the horizon for anyone not on the Bible-thumping Trump train."
—Anonymous
If you identify as trans and have concerns heading into a second Trump presidency, share them with us in the comments below, or via this anonymous Google form.
Responses have been edited for length/clarity.