Op-Ed in Press Herald: LGBTQ people have come a long way, but we still have a long way to go
But LGBTQ Pride is not only about how far we’ve come – it is also a constant reminder of how far we’ve yet to go to win full equality for LGBTQ people. This is especially true for our trans friends, family and neighbors, who live in fear of discrimination and violence on a daily basis.
Hard-won LGBTQ rights are under attack, and movement toward trans equality has stalled and reversed course under the current administration. The National Center for Transgender Equalityhas monitored the changes implemented: The Departments of Justice and Education haverevoked guidance to schools on the protection of transgender students under Title IX; the Justice Department has dropped or refused to be involved in court cases dealing with discrimination against LGBTQ persons; various federal agencies are no longer collecting demographic data on LGBT people; and transgender people have been banned from serving in the armed forces. These are only a handful of ways in which the current administration is erasing the hard-won and hard-fought progress on LGBTQ equality.