If you are the parent of a transgender child, the past four weeks have felt like a non-stop assault on the rights and care afforded to the transgender community. The attacks on transgender people in public service, access to essential health care, protections for transgender students in K-12 schools, the denial of access to public restrooms, preventing transgender people from playing sports, and the list goes on and on. One of the things we can do when everything feels upside down and on fire is to gather resources to help us navigate these difficult times.
I've put together some resources for parents of transgender children that are good to have at any time, but especially when the rights of our children are under attack. I've broken them down into categories to make them easier to refer back to quickly.
Reliable and Unbiased News Sources
Sharon McMahon. Sharon doesn't identify with any political party, so she reports on the news matter-of-factly, summarizing what is going on and giving you relevant information. She has a newsletter, which you can find here, and you can find her on all social media at @sharonsaysso.
Mosheh Oinounou at Mo News. Mosheh is an award executive producer "devoted to curating verified and balanced news." Moshesh has a daily podcast and a newsletter and is on social media @mosheh.
Jessica Yellin at News Not Noise. Jessica is an award-winning political journalist and the former Chief White House Correspondent for CNN. She is on Instagram and Facebook and has a Substack newsletter.
The Associated Press. The AP Press has long set the standard for being a reliable source for ethical, accurate, and non-biased journalism. You can find them on the web, on YouTube, and on social media @APNews.
Know Your Child's Rights
GLSEN. If you have a school-age child, GLSEN works to ensure that every student has the right to a safe, supportive, and LGBTQ+ K-12 Education. You can find their student resources here and their educator resources here.
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). The ACLU fights to ensure that everyone's rights are protected. This page is dedicated to LGBTQ+ and transgender rights. You should also know the contact information for your local ACLU office (there are 54 nationwide). If you scroll down their main page, there is a place where you can enter your information. It will tell you where your local office is, what their phone number is, and link you to their website.
Also, you should be aware of what rights your child has in your state and what rights have been challenged in your state. Keep track of what bills are being introduced in the house that threaten transgender rights, and be sure to call your representatives and voice your displeasure about them. You can every day, and I have it on good authority from someone on the inside that calling gets more attention than emailing. If your representative is voting against the bills, you can still call and voice your displeasure about the bills and thank your rep for voting against them.
Transgender/LGBTQ+ Specific Information
Movement Advancement Project (MAP). This map tracks policies impacting LGBTQ+ people in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the five populated U.S. territories. You click on your state, and it will tell you all the laws and policies impacting LGBTQ+ people in your state or if specific laws don't exist.
Erin in the Morning. Erin Reed is a queer journalist and content creator whose advocacy work focuses on anti-LGBTQ+ legislation around the United States. She is the creator of the Anti-Trans Legislative Risk Map, which shows you which states are high-risk to travel to if you are a transgender person. She can be found on TickTock, Twitter (X), and LinkedIn and has a newsletter on Substack.
Crisis Resources
Every minute counts in an emergency. While I hope you should never have to use the following information, it's good to have it on hand, just in case.
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: Call or text 988. For TYY Users: Use your preferred relay service or dial 711, then 988. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is a national network of local crisis centers that provides free and confidential emotional support to people in suicidal or emotional distress 24/7.
Crisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741. Crisis Text Line provides free, text-based support 24/7.
The Trevor Project: 1-866-488-7386 or text START to 678678. A national 24/7, toll-free, confidential suicide hotline for LGBTQ+ youth.
Trans Lifeline: 877-565-8860 for the US and 877-330-6366 for Canada. Tran's Lifeline's Hotline is a peer support service run by trans people for trans and questioning callers.
Finally, you may want to consider creating an emergency action plan for your child because having one and never needing to use it is better than needing one and not having one prepared. This post on my website can help you with that.
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