I’ve seen a depressing trend of Democratic politicians embracing anti trans talking points and compromising gender affirming care for young people. This is extremely concerning as states and the federal government are undermining access to care now more than ever. Democrats standing by trans people has far more dire consequences now than ever, yet we’re being treated as politically disposable by people who used to campaign on lgbtq issues like Gavin Newsom and Pete Buttigieg.
I can’t say I’m surprised. Liberal papers like the New York Times has been uncritically promoting unscientific transphobia for years that claims alternatives exist to gender affirming care. My guess is that people see a person transitioning as an unfortunate thing, desperately wishing there was another way. They ignore the fact that gender affirming care is both the best treatment for dysphoria, and one of the most successful treatments for any mental condition ever discovered.
To put it simply, making gender affirming care harder to obtain for kids will kill many of them. Kids being kept from care by their parents already drives people to suicide, and a slimy politician preventing supportive parents from helping their kids will do the same. Every time I see people claim these guys are our best shot at beating fascism, I die inside. I have no doubt that they’ll eventually axe care for all adults like everyone who was originally “worried about fairness in sports” is currently pushing for. The only way they won’t is if we make it a costly issue for them.
Trans rights are human rights. What would be the point of opposing fascism if it’s not to uphold human rights?
because it’s worse for business than neoliberalism was. The rich agreed to fascism because they needed to redirect populist sentiment, but the neoliberal model really was optimal for them.
They created a culture war to distract people from the class war they are winning.
Based on a recent video i viewed of tech CEOs practically fellating Trump on camera, I would say business sentiment regarding fascism is mixed, at least.
They wish they didn’t have to kiss the ring, but at least they aren’t seeing harsher regulation from radical communist liberals.
Ratchet effect, in real time. This is what harm reduction and blue no matter who buys you. Democrats are not your friend. The system cannot be reformed. We cannot vote our way out of this. Trans people need to arm up. Allies need to arm up. Look out for one another. Stay safe and good luck.
Sure, but it is kinda funny how every time people start to get close to attacking capitalism or supporting socialists rising in power, suddenly there’s a big wave of hate and outrage at trans people, gay people, migrants, etc.
It’s almost like they want us to butt-heads with a majority of the population about issues that population will never budge on because the average American has the attention span and compassion of a broken chunk of drywall and only know how to fight.
I have been saying this for a long time, do not abandon advocacy for the rights of marginalized people, but if we want to actually bend society to protecting and respecting those rights, we have to bend it against corporate influence, we have to elect anti-oligarchs, socialists and economic progressives to our local seats of power and influence, we have to kick the legs out from under the foundation of the system that will come for trans people, it will come for gay people, it will come for brown, black and interracial couples, it will come for the mentally handicapped and it will come for women and children, it will come for your video games and your weed and your furry art. One-by-one, every single right and freedom will be lost if we don’t start using our strongest weapon against their most vulnerable weak-point, which is by not spending money on luxuries, saving cash away from the banks and corporations who want to “borrow” it.
Our interpersonal narratives with each other need to keep focusing on how the wealthy are the ones making us hate each other, they’re the ones driving up the price of eggs, they’re the ones making us scared of trans people, they’re the ones running congress and senate, they’re the ones making gas cost so much, they’re the ones taking chunks out of our paychecks and giving us NOTHING in return.
Again, all anyone knows how to do is argue and fight so we have to channel that at the right targets instead of meeting it head-on or we will keep getting stuck in this spiral that has seen only losses in the last decade.
Your “reasoned” argument to “slow down”, “don’t rock the boat” or “be patient” for social justice would be familiar to Civil Rights activists. MLK suggested that the “white moderate” was a bigger obstacle to civil rights than the white citizens council.
What you’re really saying is that class struggle takes priority over social justice. The big problem with that is that social justice has never came to people who who politely sit at the back of the bus.
What you’re really saying is that class struggle takes priority over social justice.
Right now? Yes. Not broadly, social justice is one of our top goals, but we don’t take Berlin without storming Normandy. We are losing social justice because we are ignoring class. We are about to lose everything because we’re not attacking class.
I wish, wish, wish more leftists with activist mindsets spent more time in liberal and conservative spaces so everyone had a more realistic idea what we’re up against. If we keep attacking this wall with scolding, with social messaging, with appeals to empathy, we’re going to keep doing what we’ve been fucking doing for years… losing.
Again though, this isn’t a binary, let’s not fall down that weird schism that bad-actors have leveraged us apart with that says “if you’re not for X you MUST be against Y” or “If you’re supporting Gaza children you MUST be against Jewish people” etc.
I don’t think there’s any harm in carrying our flags and slogans in marches and so on, but if you’re talking to an average white liberal or conservative in actual conversation… which you should do a LOT more of, we keep the talk focused on what they’re losing out on because of oligarchy and what harm it’s doing to them personally, because literally, that’s all they care about BUT it’s a crack that can be weakened and allow other issues in. (As well as the harm being waged on trans people, people of color, etc, depending on the person and how receptive they are. You should broadly get better at making people like you too but that’s a separate essay.)
I am speaking from experience here in changing people’s hearts and minds on these issues. You all are a lot stronger as individuals than you think and are capable of doing so much more than you think, but it’s a power that needs to be wielded with tactics and strategy like anything. We are the smarter side, we are the thinking side, let’s think of ways to stop losing. If you have better ideas to stop losing I’m all ears, because whatever we’ve been doing isn’t working. Don’t let the “we got 'em” memes color our thinking because the fascists are literally celebrating in the streets and growing in power and they’re coming for all of us.
Right, the problem with the white moderates was their focus on class struggle…
Welcome to your civilization. Where your rights are used to further agendas.
Edit:Not Progress
Democrats should really just embrace pro-gun politics and win over both right-wingers and left-wing gun owners.
Why in the world would anyone in his right mind buy a tool they’ll never use?
I’m always amazed at the idea that we left leaning don’t have guns. I’ve got a range a few miles away. While yes, i don’t have a basement full of guns. The number is definitely not zero. I think there are more left gun owners than is given credit.
It has nothing to do with leaning right or left. The odds of having to use a gun are smaller that having to repair a 15th century submarine. There are better places to spend that kind of time and money.
Would you like me to guess your sex and race? I’ve never repaired a 15th century submarine, twice the former though. I must just be an outlier.
I bought my crappy little gun for 80 bucks.
I guess I need to find out what tools I need to repair a 15th century… ohhhhh.
Haha
They deliberately made things like guns and flags our contention issues so that the left remains weak and neutered. I can’t imagine more than the slimmest margin of Lemmy lefties would dare fly an American flag or open-carry and that’s one of many reasons we never succeed at policy or lasting social change.
Force and patriotism are political capital which is the currency of politics and policy and elections, and this is why Trump’s base has so much more value and are courted more than say, Bernie’s base or whatever mythical, fantasy leftist leader everyone is hoping will show up next.
Everyone here thinks we’re just a one good candidate away from some kind of absurd post-scarcity civilization with holodecks and food replicators. We are barbarians with iPhones, we have to treat our world as a much less fair and far more hostile place.
liberals won’t use them, leftists would
Now that’s a good answer. And i guess the distinction gets more relevant bybthe day.
I pray I’ll never have to pull a plunger on someone. But if that day comes, I’ll be real glad I already have a plunger.
Right wingers will never, ever, under any circuimstance shift left. Pandering to them is exactly why the turnout for Harris was millions less than Biden.
Voter turnout was at a record high in 2020, because the Covid-19 pandemic and BLM protests, made the then administration unpopular. It was a relative anomaly, and the next presidential race would have had lower turnout regardless of the candidate.
Prior to 2024, Harris had always presented herself as more left than Biden, she only claimed to tow the line in 2024 due to how unpopular she was in the 2020 DNC primary.
Guns are still, nevertheless, a good thing for antifascists. Democrats literally are trying to empower the fucking cops to arbitraily deny people of color the constitution right to own guns (via denying gun permits under so-calles “may issue” laws, ironically, were struck down by the 6 fascist-alligned judges in the supreme court)
Armed minorities are harder to oppress.
I just don’t see full auto rifles being more useful to us than semi-autos.
Unless we use it to spray crowds of people it has more drawbacks than benefits.
Transphobia IS gender fascism
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They’re neoliberals so they can’t say the obvious things a Dem candidate needs to do to win an election.
They’d rather a Republican win than a Dem who actually wants to fix wealth inequality
Dem who actually wants to fix wealth inequality
Show me this phantom Democrat. I’ll vote for them.
If you honestly can’t think of a single example, me naming anyone isn’t going to help anything…
But let’s give it a shot:
Bernie Sanders
Oh my friend. You haven’t figured out that the Democrats are just really “right light” without a backbone?
Would’ve they been better than Trump? 100% yes. But anything can be better than Trump’s Republicans.
There is no real social left movement in the US. Maybe Bernie and AOC get close to it but still quite centrist.
So, the Democrats are the right throwing some social crumbs around but supporting regressive policies. Once people realize that, a real social movement can start.
I’ve known this for years. What I’m pissed about is liberal asshats who think transphobes are the messiahs who will save their already dead rule of law.
There are left movements, though. There’s the Democratic Socialists of the USA.
I’m pretty sure even Communists. But your political system and the leaning of most of the US people means that they will never be able to have any impact.
Not without exposure, and not with that attitude. One person can have impact, for better (Nelson Mandela) or worse (Trump).
Personally, I don’t see a difference between combating fascism, and gender rights, gender affirming care, and recognizing people as the gender that they feel most comfortable as. I also don’t see a difference between combating fascism and LGBTQIA+ rights in general.
Fascists would have all of those rights stripped away from people. So bring pro LGBTQIA+ and being against fascism, is essentially the same thing in my mind.
The thing about it is, you can be against fascism, but not pro LGBTQIA+, but it would be, in my mind, impossible to be pro LGBTQIA+ and not be anti fascist.
So anyone who wants to deny LGBTQIA+, gender affirming care, or the recognition of people’s gender, but who is self-proclaiming to be against fascism, is either under some confused notion of what fascism would entail, trying to find some “middle ground” which doesn’t really exist, or they’re still fascist, but only if their way of life is what’s being promoted under fascism, and we can it something other than fascism.
All of those people can suck my dick.
LGBTQIA+ rights are human rights.
EDIT: I want to add that I’m not LGBTQIA+. I just believe that anyone who is, should have the same rights to be just as happy, or as miserable, as everyone who isn’t. I am an ally. I am a humanist.
Ok, look, as long we PINKY PROMISE that we’re going to stop at the VERY FIRST one of the “first they came for the…” marginalized groups, you gotta let us murderize JUST THEM and then bada bing, bada boom, fascism is cooked!
But you see, throwing trans people under the bus is a necessary step to finally convince the people running the camps that we’re on their side. I’m actually reducing harm. I’m a good person.
“Let’s meet in the middle and only oppress people 50%”
I think its extremely uncommon to say we have to sacrifice trans rights
More commonly some people say trans rights are a fringe issue not necessary to defeat fascism, and slightly less common yo say trans rights were never even on the table.
If you have to pick between an anti-trans dnc and a Republican then you’re gonna be voting on some other issue like whether or not to bring back Gulags and if the lower 90% should be able to afford housing or food or healthcare.
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