After Trump’s election win, local trans community concerned about their future

Now that he’s won the election, some within Georgia’s transgender community are fearful about the possibility of losing those rights and the physical harm they say they could face. The growing uncertainty looms.

“The reality is the unknown of how bad things are going to be, which is challenging” said Royce Soble, a trans and nonbinary photographer who has documented Atlanta’s LGBTQ+ scene for decades. “I just can’t believe we’re back here again.”

Republicans spent nearly $215 million on anti-trans ads this election cycle. Trump rallies featured parody clips mocking trans people in the military. In speeches, the former president has used strident language like his promise to keep “transgender insanity” out of schools.

The anti-trans ads likely had no impact on voting patterns, said GLAAD CEO Sarah Kate Ellis, citing a recent analysis by GLAAD and Ground Media — a research-driven storytelling company. However, she said they “create a dangerous narrative around the trans community, making it way more dangerous for them to exist in society today.”

For Soble, watching the ads felt like “having a target on my back.”

Safety and support

Credit: David Clifton-Strawn

Credit: David Clifton-Strawn

Given Trump’s anti-trans attacks, Soble (who uses they/them pronouns) felt disappointed about November’s election results. They didn’t expect to prepare for another Trump presidency.

A year before Trump won the 2016 election, Soble received gender-affirming surgery. In 2021, they began taking HRT (hormone replacement therapy). Soble worries what will happen to their health care when Trump is back in office.

“I am the happiest version I would ever say I’ve been in my entire life,” the 51-year-old said about taking HRT. “I wish I had the strength to have done it earlier, but it just wasn’t my time. As every person who’s trans, their story is different. No one has the same timeline, but everyone has the desire to be here, and we will always do our best to fight to stay. All we ask is for the support for us to exist.”

Trump and other Republicans (who now hold a majority in the House and Senate) have vowed to reverse several protections for trans communities, including gender-affirming care.

Campaign promises to keep “men out of women’s sports” could include a rollback on Title IX safeguards that prohibit discrimination and harassment based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Campaign promises to keep “transgender insanity” out of schools can impact students’ use of pronouns, bathrooms and locker rooms. Trump also touted plans to ban federal funding for gender-affirming care for youth.

But fulfilling those goals could be easier said than done, says Chanel Haley, deputy director of Georgia Equality. The group is the largest LGBTQ+ rights organization in the state. Haley said the likelihood of Trump’s campaign promises having an immediate impact on trans communities significantly relies on what’s enacted on a state level.

“Everybody is panicking about the next four years,” Haley said. “Congress is up in two years. … These things are a process that might take a year or two to even get to an answer.

Last year, Georgia enacted legislation banning most gender-affirming care for minors — becoming one of at least 26 states to do so. Although the state has no laws against trans participation in youth sports or bathroom bans targeting trans students, there have been efforts to push for such legislation. In August, Georgia lawmakers heard calls to enforce a statewide ban on trans student-athletes competing in women’s sports — a step that was taken even further on last month, when a Georgia Senate Committee on Protecting Women’s Sports heard testimony from both sides of the debate.

While studies have shown many people support protections from discrimination against transgender communities, the issue of transgender athletes on sports teams yields less support. A 2022 Pew Research Center study revealed that more than half (58%) of U.S. adults approve calls for transgender athletes to compete in sports that match the gender they were born with.

Following Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20, Haley anticipates more challenges within his first 100 days — especially when state and federal policies align.

“The negative is that all the legislation that came up before is going to come up again,” she said. “Then when you have your state government, who feels emboldened (to enact anti-trans legislation) and have the support of the federal, then they kind of ram things.”

Trump secured Georgia’s 16 electoral votes, flipping the battleground state. Support for Joe Biden during the 2020 campaign was the first time Georgia had voted for a democratic presidential candidate in nearly three decades. Despite Georgia’s Republican leanings, Soble said Atlanta’s vibrant LGBTQ+ scene has always provided comfort.

The city, known as the gay capital of the South, ranks in the top 10 for metro areas with the largest LGBTQ+ populations (194,000), according to most recent estimates from the Williams Institute — a leading research center on sexual orientation and gender identity.

“Being in Atlanta, I’ve have always felt safe. I live in my comfortable bubble with my very tight community. We all look after one another. We, for the most part, live in a very liberal part of town. I just exist.”

Now, Soble is more worried about how they’ll be treated outside of metro Atlanta.

Aaron Baker, a trans woman who resides in Sandy Springs, has similar concerns. She’s even had thoughts about leaving the area. Two days after the election, Baker attended a wedding. For her, it was a delightful respite from the political news. But the reality of Trump being the president-elect sank in afterward. She broke down and cried.

“I just had to stop pretending like I was a normal person.”

Along with the possible loss of health care, Baker is also concerned about more violence against trans communities when Trump is back in office. Last year, at least three trans women were shot and killed in Atlanta.

“We were completely terrified before this even happened. We were such a hurt and fragile community, then this (happens). This is going to push so many people over the edge.”

Continuing to fight

Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez

Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez

Baker, 45, also thinks about what Trump’s second term could mean for younger members of the community.

The Trevor Project, a suicide prevention nonprofit for LGBTQ+ youth, saw a surge in calls on Election Day through the morning of Nov. 7 — 125% increase in crisis contact volume when compared to normal days.

But a source of optimism for Baker stems from her political advocacy work, which includes volunteering with Georgia Equality. This year, the group blocked nearly 20 anti-LGBTQ bills in the state Legislature, including a bill aiming to further limit gender-affirming care. Chanel Haley expects proposed legislation targeting or limiting the rights of the LGBTQ+ community in the general assembly to be much worse next year.

“We’re going to do everything we can for the community to make sure we fight,” Haley said.

That fight includes prioritizing safety within the community, said Sean Ebony Coleman. Coleman is the founder of Destination Tomorrow, a trans-led, New York-based organization that provides comprehensive services to LGBTQ+ people. The grassroots agency expanded to Atlanta in 2022 — forming Destination Tomorrow South. He said identifying what safety looks like next year is crucial.

Since starting its work in Atlanta, the organization has partnered with various entities for services, including the mayor’s office.

“We have vibrant relationships. I’m just fearful. Now, do you peel that back? Is the president doing things that will stop you from contributing to LGBT or trans organizations?”

Credit: Handout

Credit: Handout

Oyle Harrison founded Trans Atlanta Social Club 15 years ago. They host events like camp outs, hiking meetups and dinner outings throughout the year. Roughly 400 people are active within the organization.

Harrison finds healing in centering community, something he clings to more these days, given the uncertainty of how a second Trump presidency will impact trans people.

He created the club “just to be visible and show people that we’re doing normal things that everyone else does because for some reason people think we’re weird and don’t do normal things.”