Let’s face it. The real animosity these days is about transgender, gender non-conforming, or gender fluid identities. Most people believe in a binary world of sex. We’re either male or female. We are born that way and can’t change. Public opinion has come to accept gays or lesbians, but not those who are transgender. According to Forbes, 375 transgender people were killed in 2021, most of them outside of the United States. That number of people in the U.S. who identify as transgender is estimated to be 1.6 million. That compares with the 23 million who identify as LGBTQ+.

Sexual orientation and gender identity are two separate issues. Gender identity is a complex issue mixing psychology, genetics, environmental, and social factors. Gender identity is our self-concept of who we are. Sexual orientation is to whom we are sexually attracted. Some people are attracted to both men and women and are called bisexual. For generations, however, people married those of opposite sex primarily for social acceptance. Mental Health experts try to explain it to us, but we get bogged down in the details. Although we all have some male and female characteristics, basically we just want to keep it simple and not get confused by all the contributing factors.

Now that the Republicans feel they’ve won on abortion, they’ve decided to come after us. It’s cheap shot for political gain. It appeals to their base, and they’ve got the votes in many statehouses. They seem to be particularly incensed about transgender issues and/or gender identity. It remains to be seen how popular that will be in the next general election in 2024.

The long-term effects of this open hostility to LGBTQ+ folks in the Republican Party may prove to be damaging. In their efforts to appeal to business interests, they may find that corporations are cautious about programs that hurt corporate recruiting efforts. People are flocking to low-tax southern states, but their reactionary social policies may slow that trend. Texas and Florida boast of their bigotry, but eventually folks will get fed up with it. When you treat people like dirt, you may end up face down in the mud yourself. It’s curious how people who are opposed to big government can rationalize the invasion into people’s lives in the most personal ways possible.

Demonstrators carry anti-homophobia signs during a vigil in memory of the victims of Orlando's gay nightclub attack in London, U.K. on June 13, 2016.

According to an article in The Advocate, bills seeking to restrict access to gender-affirming care have been introduced in 21 states this year. The 59 bills introduced so far against trans health care are part of a rash of anti-LGBTQ legislation, 185 bills in all, according to the American Civil Liberties Union. “These bills represented a coordinated effort to deny transgender people our freedom, our safety, and our dignity,” Chase Strangio, deputy director for transgender justice at the ACLU’s LGBTQ & HIV Project, said.

North Carolina has two anti-LGBTQ bills pending, one in the Senate, and one in the House. The one in the Senate is modeled on legislation in Florida and is heading on a fast track. The GOP claims they could override a Governor’s veto.

The U.S. House of Representatives is expected to introduce a slate of new anti-LGBTQ bills, but the session is just getting started after a lengthy debate in naming a new speaker. With a slim GOP majority, their top priority is going after the Jan. 6th committee, which already has been disbanded. Attacking Hunter Biden probably is second priority, so we may come down the list.