(Photo above by Tracey Carlos at https://traceyquirk.wixsite.com/photorevolution)
The following was created by someone named Jeremy Oakes. We had planned on posting a response to President Trumps attack on our transgender friends, but what Jeremy wrote is more brilliant than anything we could have come up with. We offer a humble bow to you. May your greatness be celebrated tonight. If you lived nearby, your drinks would be on us tonight. Thank you.
PLEASE SHARE THIS.
NO, SERIOUSLY. WE BEG YOU TO SHARE THIS, COPY AND PASTE THIS, JUST GET THIS EVERYWHERE!
Everything hurts today, so I thought I’d make an argument cheat sheet for the all the nonsense.
1. Trump supporter: “The military is no place for a social experiment! MAGA”
You: There are already transgender soldiers in the military. A conservative estimate is that there are 2,450 transgender soldiers actively serving and 1,510 in the reserves. They are already fighting and dying for you. (RAND)
2. Trump supporter: “We shouldn’t have to pay for their weird surgery! MAGA!!!”
You: You are right to be concerned about military surplus- but that surplus doesn’t have anything to do with these soldiers. Admitting transgender soldiers may increase costs between $2.4 and $8.4 million, but that is a tiny fraction of the overall budget. It will likely have little impact on the $6 billion we already spend for soldiers’ health. It’s, at most, 0.134%. (RAND)
3. Trump supporter: “You looney! Millions of dollars is millions of dollars!!! MAAAAAGA!!!!!”
You: Ok- let me put it this way. We spent $84.24 million dollars on erectile dysfunction drugs in 2014. Caring for these soldiers only costs a small fraction of that. (Military Times).
4. Trump supporter: “I don’t want anyone who’s mentally ill in the military! MAGAGMA!!”
You: Well, lucky for all of us, being transgender is not a mental illness. The American Psychological Association says, “A psychological state is considered a mental disorder only if it causes significant distress or disability. Many transgender people do not experience their gender as distressing or disabling, which implies that identifying as transgender does not constitute a mental disorder.”
Many people who are transgender do, in fact, suffer with depression or anxiety- but not because they are trans. They suffer because of lack of social support and bigotry they experience.
5. Trump: “Look- a hot dog is a hot dog and a taco is a taco—if you can’t tell the difference, you’re crazy. GMAMAG”
You: It’s more complicated than that. Your gender is not based on sexual characteristics alone. In fact, recent research suggests the brain structures of trans individuals have distinct similarities to their preferred gender than their natal gender. It’s frankly biology. And, if we want trans individuals to AVOID mental illness, the best treatment can be to let them transition in peace and without harassment. (Scientific American).
6. Trump supporter: “Have you ever heard of a trans hero?! They must not be doing anything even if they are there! MMMMM!”
You: Yep. Kristin Beck. She has a purple heart and was a part of Seal Team 6. She’s a badass.
7. Trump supporter: “Can you imagine how uncomfortable the other soldiers must be?! MAMA”
You: They’re soldiers. They’re fine. Good leadership makes a team cohesive- and other countries have already had success with having soldiers who are transgendered. (RAND).
8. Trump supporter: “I still don’t like it. MAGAZINE”
You: Well, we’ve established that these soldiers are already hard a work, cost very little to accommodate, are of sound mind and body, and have already been heroes. I’m not sure what you have left to be upset about.
9. Tum supporter: “VOMITS DISCRIMINATION.”
You: K…. bye.