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Former NFL player running for office says Democrats need to fight for trans people (www.advocate.com)
submitted 1 week ago by to c/politics@lemmy.world
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“We’re seeing a war against trans individuals being waged by our federal government, and we, as citizens, need to be willing to step up and say this is not OK,” Kluwe said. “The Democratic Party has taken a very defensive posture on trans issues when that’s the absolute wrong thing to do. You don’t make a bully go away by cowering in the corner and say, I’ll agree with you on these little things. That just encourages the bully.

“We need to be full-throated in the attack, saying these are people who pay taxes, who serve in our military, and who are entitled to the exact same rights that every single other American is entitled to, which includes health care and the opportunity to live a prosperous life. We can’t be afraid of the right-wing fear machine. We have to take it to them, show that we’re willing to fight.”

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[+] -29 points 1 week ago (11 children)

Less emphasis needs to be put into helping the like 2% of people, and much more on the general 80%+ percent of people who would be better off with lungs like lower taxes, government security over reach, corrupt politicians, taxing billionaires, getting so much money out of politics, better pay and benefits, and social healthcare, etc.

Trans rights effect a small amount of people and way too much prioritization is being thrown at it. It's pretty much just a distraction so none of the bigger issues get taken care of.

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  • [–] 13 points 1 week ago

    The problem with this mentality is that if we allow ourselves to be acclimated to the oppression of a marginalized community, ANY marginalized community, the next one becomes easier.

    You're blind if you think they'll stop with trans people.

    The only response to this kind of attack is a full throated rejection and counterattack.

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  • [–] 22 points 1 week ago (2 children)

    Less emphasis needs to be put into helping the like 2% of people,

    Nobody's asking for that, it's about making sure that 100% of Americans are treated equally by the law

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  • [+] -12 points 1 week ago (1 child)

    Talking about it and getting laws passed and making that happen is "asking for that". All those things take time, resources, and advertising. There's a dozen other major issues that effect many more people, including the trans people themselves. You really think the Republicans in government actually care about what bathroom you use? It's just a distraction from things that are really important to them.

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  • [–] 15 points 1 week ago

    Republicans are the ones bringing Trans rights to the forefront by consistently attacking them. They are the ones spending on ads talking about the “trans agenda” and making wild claims like schools forcibly transitioning kids. The Trans-in-sports issue affects only a fraction of the already tiny Trans community, but the conservatives love focusing on it because, just like with the bathroom bills, they can frame it as though it’s about men trying to “take advantage” by pretending they are women - and because more people can see themselves trying to cheat at something or trick others to get what they want than can imagine feeling out of place in their own bodies, it works. So while I agree that it doesn’t need to be the Democrats focus (and it isn’t), they do need to counter the torrent of bullshit spewing from the right.

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  • [–] 11 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

    Since you're potentially German (or even if you're not) there's a pretty famous poem about disregarding attacks on minority populations. You may have heard of it.

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  • [–] 11 points 1 week ago

    The 2% is the focus of the attacks. They need to be defended because they are being attacked. It would be foolish to just let the fascists divide and conquer without any pushback. There is no benefit to abandoning a part of our coalition because that would simply invite further attacks on our flanks.

    As an example, Dems have been experimenting with anti-trans rhetoric because trans folks are being attacked by fascists. Influential consultants have floated the idea that Dems should run anti-abortion candidates to try and get ahead of the fascists attacks.

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  • [–] 6 points 1 week ago (1 child)

    Back in the 90s a band called Manic Street Preachers wrote a great song inspired by the Spanish civil war.

    How it relates here is that if you tolerate the oppression and attempted genocide of trans people just because there's "only like 2%" of them, then your children will be next

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