“The young [trans] people who are so brave — I want you to know that your president has your back.”

I'm sorry, but...

Who TF is coming outta the closet over pretty words from one guy? Even if it's the President?

And who the fuck can he protect when he cannot get his own promises passed? It is all tough talk from uncle joe pretending he is doing something when he doesn't have anyone's back. This is the same guy who does not even have the back of his own party.

Joe can barely even protect his private pool from black people like corn pop, so how has he got our back as trans people?

I asked you first.

I am cis and I can't speak to your experience but speaking to many people across the LGBTQ spectrum, I have never once heard anyone site "Well,this political said nice things" as a reason to come out. I have seen people do so because their own situation allows for it and they feel safe enough to do so, especially when more and more people decided to come out in the 2010s.

Cite examples.

I don’t know anyone personally, but I do know that back in the 90s A LOT of gay and lesbian soldiers were put out if he military because Clinton said “don’t ask don’t tell”. They got a false sense of security but didn’t realize if you chain off command wants you out, they will find a way to put you out.

So, they weren’t specifically put out because they came out as gay/lesbian, but if you review all the dishonorable discharges at the time, I’ll bet you find many of them are gay or lesbian and will deny whatever charges were brought against them.

Me bitch. Yeah, way back in the day I was led into a false sense of security by zero tolerance policies regarding a hostile workplace only to be attacked and houned out of my career because I believed in cis people lip service. I thought people had my back because people were all about zero tolerance for prejudice and slurs. I found out the fucking hard way if you are not mentioned in the laws for protection against prejudice then you do not have shit.

I am not alone because it happens all the fucking time. How many PoC have found themselves hounded out of jobs today even if there are protections in place? It still happens, and joe is not doing shit about it. Oh, and let us remember when it was a matter of putting PoC into schools of white Joe was on the side of the segregationalists because it would make the bullies abuse them.

Stop telling people it is OK to come out of the closet when you do not have full protections from them and the cis people are just going to turn their backs in unity with the right. Your attempts to make joe a fucking hero for doing nothing but laying a trap you admit he has no power to disarm is going to hurt people. Cut the bullshit with joe, he is a worthless lazy fuck when it comes to actually defending GLBT people, and you all know it. Stop busting your arm patting yourselves on the back because nothing changed with that speech.

Fair enough, but that's the military in general anyway. I expect them to be cunts.

You are right. If you are not viligant against the prejudice and active about protecting GLBT people and you encourage them to come out because you have their back, then you made the trap for the right to attack them and hurt them. Joe is not active in protecting GLBT people because he does not want to anger their attackers. he values the right wing haters and their votes, and he will turn his back if people come out and find themselves attacked by the right.

Joe is using the GLBT community as a flag for supporting him when he cannot do anything, and is not even willing to try.

people need to fuck off with this backpatting for nothing.

Hey, I don't even disagree that it's a nothing burger (albeit a more pleasant one than anything Trump gave us) but I genuinely assumed everyone would see it like that.

Since you want to mention his name, let us go way back in the time machine. I think it was the Bush Jr. Years a republican mayor of NYC went to a party dressed as a woman. he fooled around with Trump in drag. It was all very harmless and fun. It is something that glorious leader joe has never done, but somehow Trump's cockstain of a lawyer and him flirted around showing the wholet world nothing terrible happens when a man puts on a dress. Rudy was still the right wing darling, and these guys became even more popular on the right for what they dod.

I am not saying it turned out great later, but way back when this happened it was a fucking thing. Here were two right wing man's men showing this did not make you gay, give you a vagina, or even make you a loser in the eyes of the right. They did that way before DOMA was tossed out. What was Joe doing back in the day? A whole lot of silence in regards to those issues. I have given Rudy some credit because his people were not the type to be thrilled by such a thing. I do not see a lot of left wing men going and wearing a dress like that, even at some costume dance where it would be OK because they do not like the optics of such a thing.

So thanks for the lip service joe, but you are decades late, and you are not going to, or can do, shit about anyone getting beat up by the bigots. At least if you are going to pretend to have solidarity wear a fucking dress for the photo op and show your own courage you craven coward of a POS.

Joe's got 4 years to show me what he can do. I know it doesn't seem like it, but I keep an open mind, even if I'm stubborn about it. I have completely lost faith in electoral politics. If Joe Biden can get me to where I acknowledge it can still be beneficial for the poorest and most vulnerable, I'll admit it. He doesn't have to make me like him, doesn't have to make me be a Democrat again, just get me to believe electoralism isn't a dead end. Like right now, I don't really think he plans on doing much of anything for the transgender community, but if he squashes the legislation taking place right now in 33 states, and by that I mean if he actively works to squash it, I understand it's a big task, then I will express my gratitude for it. When someone does real good, I give them credit for it. I had to do it for Trump once or twice (I have wiped the memory of what it was, so don't ask), so I can at least give Biden the same chance. I don't think he will, but I'm going to watch and see.

And you fucking actually believe that's the way it went down with Corn Pop? I have some ocean front property in Nebraska for sale if you are interested.

It interesting how they whitewash their glorious leader's prejudice.

It's interesting how we color our perceptions. Disturbing even.

Regardless of what Joe will or won't do, I also believe in mutual aid, so I'm posting this:

There are 33 states that are pushing anti-transgender legislation. I have little faith that our federal government will actually step up, beyond words, to do something to quash these bigoted attempts at destroying transgender people, so we, as regular folks, are all we have.

Mutual Aid can do more to help your neighbor than the labyrinthine systems of government that almost never hear you anyway. So start here:

https://transequality.org/.../mutual-aid-and-emergency-funds
Lists COVID help right now, but also deals in state and local agencies to help transgender folks find aid, shelter, and financial assistance.

https://www.them.us/.../5-mutual-aid-initiatives-trans...
Article's a little older, but the mutual aid programs they mention include help getting personal necessities, finding shelter, and learning self-defense for people in the trans community.

https://www.transgenderdistrictsf.com/covid-19-relief
Again, dealing with COVID right now, but they also help our black trans brothers, sisters, and beloved enbies acquire bail money, as well as finding shelter, mental care hotlines, and more.

If you think your local representative can help, then please contact them. Here's an A-Z directory of every Senator, Rep, Governor, and city level government official with their contact information readily available:
https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials

We're all we have.

It's up to the supreme court. It got flipped.

Failing that it's up to congress.

The president can do little.

The president can actually do things. I do not like the things trump tried to do, but he would actually sign executive orders and come out and try to drive the right to pass things for him to sign. Joe gives up before he even tries. Things come along, the republicans or munchkin object, and then joe and company claim trhere is nothing they can do.

I get they will oppose things, but throw some shit against the wall and at least name and shame the opponents. When you do not do that you are actually doing nothing. I can understand failure, but I cannot understand not even trying. I certainly will not give him any credit for making excuses and then trying to claim he has our back. There are plenty of people in the history of GLBT, cultural, and racial protections who have failed, but they actually did something.

To your question, yes it matters on the margins - but not as much as it should because kids in crisis are looking at what ***IS HAPPENING*** in their immediate life, less so than the (good and needed) far distant platitudes.

But here's the thing to me - I'm *GLAD* he said so, it's far better than not having brought it up, and because of the testimony of Sarah McBride, I'm not in any doubt that the feeling is sincere....

BUT (as I said on Facebook)
I'm gonna need to see some swift, decisive, and dramatic actions from the executive branch.
He won't interfere with DoJ (nor should he) but they should be bringing suit after suit, before the governor's ink gets dry on this shit.

DoE should be straight up promising that Fed ed dollars will be cut off to any school or district that doesn't comply with their interpretation of Title IX

HHS should be using all their leverage in every case where bills have banned health care (including bringing suit)

And anything else in the arsenal. The bigots have 100% cone to war, and they are out literally for blood, there's no time or patience for chess.
DO SOMETHING.

There are, very fucking literally, lives at stake - and worse, if they get away with this the next wave of bills will be noticeable more draconian.The "We support you" stuff is nice but there's been WAY too much silence, as if we are expendable. Once they are done with us, they will come for others.

And that means more than politics - the NCAA should state clearly "all our events are pulled from trans-ban states. Universities in other states should say "We will hold no game, match, meet or event with a college in MS, AL, AR, TN, WV, or any other state that pulls this shit.

Companies not already on the ground there should say "don't even send your recruiters to us. Companies that are, like Walmart in AR for example, should say "our wallets are closed to anyone who voted for these laws as long as these bills are on the book."

And for god's sake, if you have a company who ISN'T going to war on our behalf, don't you fucking DARE slap a rainbow on your shit in June and expect anything but to get roasted for it. Fuck off with the symbolism and DO SOMETHING.

As i said in the other thread:

Dems/left: - advance policies 70%+ of Americans support
Republicans: - having rushed off to a spot somewhere well to the right of the John Birch society "OMG EXTREMISM!!!!"

Oh, I believe him, I'm just not certain that he and many of his people fully appreciate the threat level. I think folks are thinking "we beat them on gay marriage and they will lose on this too"

Yeah - eventually. But there will be a lot of heartache in between of the Dems don't understand the nature of the war.

Reality: they didn't overrule the parliamentarian because a few Dem senators don't wwant the 15 and don't want to even have a vote on it. When you know you don't have 50 votes, no point in grandstanding and showing your weakness.

Obama signed an EO raising the Federal contractor MW, and Republicans didn't even try to tear that down or really even mention it. The one Biden signed will likewise, almost certainly, go unchallenged.

But an EO only covers Federal workers and contractors - can't do shit about the entirely private sector.

The problem their is Manchin and his conservative cabal.

And the fact that god damned fools in Maine and elsewhere had a chance to give the Dems a clean WORKING majority and fucked it up.
No fucking reason you can elect two Dems in GEORGIA but you can't send Susan Collins to the retirement home in Maine.

There are more than that, but not many "regular folks" - just people who have direct personal experience with him.

Given the circumstances, he's done a helluva job - and has New Deal sized ambitions (that he can't even really attempt because Manchin et al - it's not just the public who's really impressed, but also people like Bernie and Warren and AOC and "the squad"

That said, they, and we, all still have significant ambitions he's either lagging on or resistant to (Warren's student loan forgiveness idea, for example, Bernie's thing about Medicare eligibility) - no one things he's nailed it on every point.

Still, this last "Families" bill? It looks almost like Warren and Bernie and AOC got together and wrote it for him. The EXTENT of it isn't as ambitious as they are (no wealth tax, for example) but it's hell and gone WAY beyond anything the Democrats have ever proposed before.

There's a balance between giving credit where due but also saying "WTF is this tho?" when it's called for.

When this was the policy before, the total cost of all transition related care was a tiny fraction of the annual military spending for Viagra.

It's such an insignificant portion of the pentagon budge that if you were to give them your 2 cents on it you'd well exceed your previous contribution to the cause.

Neither is a bad back, or a wonky knee, or type-2 diabetes, or ulcers, or a long long long list of other routine medical care that doesn't save a life but does improve QUALITY of life.

Gonna deny EVERY treatment that doesn't save a life?
Or just the one's you consider beneath you?

It's not pie, idiot.
There's plenty of money. If your shit is being underfunded, maybe we shouldn't be electing "drown it in a bathtub" Republicans to Congress for a change.

As a general principle, whether motivated by traditional religion or just traditional bigotry, they all seem entirely obsessed with penis.

IMO it's not NOTHING - it's a promissory note. One that has to be paid off and soon.

But it's not "we're going to put a man on the moon" revolutionary, to us, because the threats are more immediate.

Still, do not underestimate the value of being included in moments like that - a good president should be moving the ball not only with symbolism, but with symbolism too.

It's like Dr. Levine. Among others. People like McBride holding office - and repetition of how gay marriage got "normalized" until it was impractical to fight it:

People need to ***SEE*** us as "normal" parts of the world and the discussion. The less they are able to stereotype us with drag queen cliches, the harder it is to treat us as pariahs.
Which is what all those Republican bigots know which is WHY these bills are urgent to them - to ramp up stigma. They do give a solitary fuck about girls sports, they see it as a tool to say "BEWARE THE FREAKS!" about ALL of us.

Every thing, however small, that pushes back with the message that we're actually "just folks, trying to live our lives in peace just like you" is not nothing.

It's just that...it's the first toe in the water when what we're going to need is Normandy.

I fear it is, and there's little Joe can do about it.

Absent a complete reversal from the conservative Dems, Republicans will take back Congress in '22 and lock in minoritarian rule for the rest of our lives. And then do all sorts of evil shit.

Joe (and his party) has 20 months, really less as far as elections go, to somehow either do so much good that he prevails over those headwinds, or fix the institutional problems - to the extent possible - so there's even a fair chance.

Want to blame them? Blame them for waiting too long to recognize the nature of their opposition. But now, in this particular moment, we're circling the drain and it will take the best presidential performance since Lincoln to stay out of it.