I just learned the FBI has stopped just putting trans women on lists and threatening them (and companies associated with healthcare) and has started following them (and invading homes) and is about to open up terrorism cases against activists in order to fabricate the narrative that all trans people are terrorists to back up their threats against all gender affirming healthcare and disappear even more people than have already been disappeared. I knew it was coming, I was just hoping it was coming slow enough that it wouldn’t arrive. But now it seems clear things are going to get a lot worse in the next few years before we have any chance of it getting better.
It feels hopeless to try to do anything, because there’s nothing I can do. And while I’m not a public figure, and thus much lower on the lists, I’m still there. Just because I’m last in line to be targeted doesn’t make it any better.
And unfortunately I was doing some reading and stumbled across some other really blatantly evil stuff being done by the federal government so I was already feeling rather depressed and trying to move on and ignore it because I can’t do anything about it and it is only causing me more harm to stress about it.
It’s also deeply upsetting because it’s the kind of thing most people don’t believe is happening, even if you clearly demonstrate evidence. So there’s not much push back. I’m being demonized just for existing, just like so many other people, and it’s just a small part of a much bigger plan to continue regressing on all human rights issues.
And this is after similar efforts stripped me of access to healthcare and even before that, I was arbitrarily denied most of what I need. So it’s not like I was getting anything I deserve anyhow. But now I’ll also be killed for needing it. Someday.
A year ago, I was talking to my partner about how we probably should leave the country because it’s only a matter of time before we are targeted, and it’ll be too late to leave well before that happens. Shortly after, trans people were banned from leaving the country. It’s already been too late for most of a year.
I dunno if you heard about that. It’s old news at this point, but they just stopped issuing passports for trans people. And they target trans people who already have one to make it more difficult to leave for any reason.
I think the most upsetting part is how it’s cruelty for no benefit. These efforts only extend harm to a broad range of people by targeting a minority. There is not a single shred of benefit for anyone. Not even the rich and powerful, because the economic harm does more to them than any consolidation of power assists them. :/
Ostensibly, the point is that trans people are more likely to advocate for positive change, because just being trans makes someone much more likely to recognize how many systems in place don’t actually benefit the majority. And they want to stop progress. But it doesn’t even really achieve that goal because it just highlights how bad things are.