Numerous Democratic midterm candidates have previously made anti-trans statements or voted for anti-trans legislation. Trans journalist Erin Reed published a list yesterday of these candidates and advised her followers not to vote for them, lest their victories convince the Democratic Party “that throwing transgender people under the bus is a winning strategy,” Reed wrote.
Ah, yes. Let us always find a way to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
I’m glad I don’t have to make that call because my state isn’t one of them. That said, the existential threat of a permanent fascist takeover of the country takes precedence for me. I have lots of ways I can and do support trans folk outside of the ballot box if I had a shitty representative. I could even call them and make clear I will support a primary challenge to them on my next opportunity if they don’t change.
If this place becomes an authoritarian fascist shithole, there’s little to be done other than hide them in our basements.
I suppose it all depends on how much faith folks have that that can’t happen here — I don’t have that faith.
remember the time the principled and scientific guys defeated genocide joe by staying home, and chuck schumer went “ah I see now the error of my ways I will never support a genocide again or back centrist candidates”
glad to see a highly successful operation like the campaign to stop genocide joe repeat itself
Remember how that led to people like Mamdani winning?
Almost like taking a principled stance can pay off where as the vote blue no matter who crowd way of the past 50 years has only lead to fascism taking over.
Remember how that led to people like Mamdani winning?
No
This is disingenuous and wrong, the idiots who cast protest votes or stayed home in 2024 had no role in electing Mamdani. Shame on you for trying to take credit for his win.
One would love to put you in a reeducation camp and obliterate your entire existence. The other might say you can’t play soccer. Do with that what you will.
One would love to put you in a
reeducationextermination camp and obliterate your entire existence.FTFY
The issue is that electing transphobes normalizes transphobia. The Democratic party is always courting votes from “moderates” and conservatives, but no one is chasing trans voters. This is basically a perfect set up for the ratchet effect: Dems stop letting trans girls play sports, Repubs celebrate their victory and move the goal posts again, and now Dems are proposing some new “middle ground” restraint on trans people.
None of my local candidates were on Erin’s analysis, so I don’t have a horse in that particular race. But I do think it’s reasonable to refuse to vote for anyone who is willing to strip you of your rights because of your gender. I don’t think it’s fair to blame a marginalized group for why they’re being marginalized, when the other option is to advocate for them.
Looking at a trans person and saying “vote against your interests because if you don’t vote it might be worse for you quicker” is not fair or right. No one should be feeling smug when they do that, despite how much it seems to happen on Lemmy. The better, more useful, thing to do is to see if you are in any of the districts on Erin’s list, and, if so, advocate for your trans allies. Call your rep and say, “Hey, I want to vote for you, but your stance on trans people doesn’t align with my values.” Pressure them to not implement transphobic policies. You can still plan to vote for them anyway, but they don’t need to know that. Use the threat. Convince them that trans allies need to be courted, too, and Dems are not just the accepted and default candidate because “Republicans bad.”
You know what? Let’s go. If all you have to offer is a slightly kinder abuser, march me to the Republican death camps, at least I know they just want me dead and don’t want to fundraise off of my continued suffering and browbeat me into supporting them as my only option.
The time to vote against these candidates is the next primary. Don’t let perfect be the enemy of… the lesser of two evils. To mix metaphors.
That’s my first thought, Erin should have done this investigation before primaries, publishing it now is potentially actively harming dems chances.
Never heard of this person til after the primaries and their articles have been everywhere. Either a paid agitator or just a moron if you ask me.
Trans woman here. Them wanting more research on trans people in sports doesn’t scare me.
The fascist pedophile rapist war criminals scare me.
That is all.
Them pandering to right wing anti-trans propaganda scares me. We already have so many issues with liberals being fake performative allies willing to turn on a dime.
Concede this ground and the battlefield of public discourse will be pushed further.
What if we’re wrong?
What if height, wing-span, and upper body leverage advantages can occur from male puberty and don’t simply “go away” with hormone treatment?
The truth matters.
You do understand that people come in a variety of sizes? Looking at female athletes their bodies dominate my little frame.
The fact you’re being such a fucking pick-me on this issue makes me livid.
It honestly seems like you’re just being a pick-me for the left.
There’s a reason medical transitions are a thing. Are you really going to sit here and say puberty and physical sex changes nothing?
Are you trying to change your body, or change the minds of the entire world?
What exactly do you expect?
I notice everyone has downvotes for me but no one has a real argument against what I’m saying.
