Concerns continue to grow among LGBTQ+ community less than a month into Trump presidency
MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Concerns continue to grow among the LGBTQ+ community less than a month into the Trump presidency. A series of executive orders over the last few weeks directly impacting transgender and non-binary people have community advocates worried.
It's been about three weeks since President Donald Trump returned to the White House. On his first day back in office, he issued a series of executive orders, several of which impacting transgender people. "Queer people have always been extremely marginalized." said Elle Halo, founding director of TRANCE Consulting.
Halo has been advocating in Milwaukee for years, dedicated to helping those in the trans community on their journeys, with an emphasis on those in Black and Brown communities. "I'm very worried about our youth here in Milwaukee. We have had multiple LGBT adult and youth suicides over the last several years," she said.
She says the recent government orders targeting trans people are concerning and dangerous and rolls back support that many people rely on. "I want us to not give in to fear. We are strong. We are resilient," she said.
Some of the Trump administration's latest orders include: Defining gender as strictly male or female, barring transgender people from the military, halting federal funding for youth gender-affirming care, and banning transgender women from women's sports.
Halo says these policies will do more harm than good and they must be challenged. "What we really need is for those people with power, with privilege, with platforms, with money, with economic stability....to take action," she said.
She also says the broader issue comes down to safety for the trans community. Halo says research has shown that anti-trans and LGBTQ+ policies lead to violence.
"While there's a lot of political turmoil going on right now, let us not be blinded that there was five Black trans women killed in Milwaukee over the last three years," she said.
Her message to those impacted and scared right now is to stay engaged. "We, as LGBT people specifically, have always survived through art, through storytelling, through the tools that we have always had and so this moment is no different." she said.