Have you ever woken up and felt like you didn’t recognize where you were?
If you’ve been around long enough and paid attention, chances are you’ll remember what life was like in this country under any presidential administrations that didn’t include the name Trump, and you’ve had that experience.
Most would agree that life lived during the first Trump administration was annoying. Trump was mentally scattered and reportedly spent most of his time in the White House alone with cheeseburgers, screaming at cable news and posting vengeful rants on what was then known as Twitter.
At that time, if he even had an agenda, it was a tangled mess of confusion.
As the years passed he came to realize leaning heavily on the ideology of the far right and evangelical crowd won him more attention, supporters and votes. He unabashedly played into their passions: blind and literal interpretation of Christian “faith,” silencing those unlike themselves and the ecstasy of acting like a bully while crying victim.
But what did Trump accomplish?
He created an army of followers that called themselves MAGA. They marched on the capital and were willing to sacrifice themselves and others to meet his demands, which they embraced like religious faith. His most obvious accomplishment came in the form of tipping the balance of power in the Supreme Court, which led to the overturning of a woman’s right to reproductive freedom.
The four-year reprieve we received during the Biden/Harris administration was pleasant enough, but constantly overshadowed by cable news media’s inability to turn away from MAGA cries of injustice and threats of retaliation come the next election cycle.
In the time leading up to the next election, Trump aligned himself with the world’s richest individual and a far right-wing movement unlike anything ever experienced before. They even gave him a handbook for everything that needed to be accomplished in his next presidency: Project 2025 (P2025). While he initially denied any knowledge of P2025, he is clearly using it as a guidebook. Starting with the top of the Trump/MAGA attack list, let’s take a look at actions against our community – from the youngest to the oldest – and how we’re all being affected.
Transgender rights
Actions affecting transgender people from this administration include Executive Order 14168 (“Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government”), which mandates that federal agencies define sex as an unchangeable male and female identification based on biological characteristics that began “at conception.”
As well, the State Department stopped processing gender marker changes and eliminated the “X” gender marker on U.S. passports; the Social Security Administration also stopped processing gender marker updates; U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services updated forms to require applicants’ “biological sex at birth” and Trump rescinded Biden-era policies that had allowed transgender people to serve openly in the military. As if that wasn’t enough, Executive Order 14190, “Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling,” forces federal agencies to withhold funding from schools that implement policies supporting transgender students. In the federal prison system, directives were issued to place transgender inmates in federal prisons according to their sex assigned at birth, which includes placing transgender women in male facilities (and violates the federal level Prison Rape Elimination Act).
LGBTQ+ youth
Politics and culture in 2025 have increased mental distress and targeted protections for LGBTQ+ youth through policies and a continuing increase in anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment. Based on a survey conducted by The Trevor Project at the end of 2024, the impact is real, and severe. “From anti-LGBTQ+ politics to discrimination, bullying and barriers in mental health,” said Ronita Nath, vice president of research at The Trevor Project, “these stressors pile up and take a real toll.”
According to a 2025 Trevor Project survey, 90 Percent of LGBTQ+ youth reported that the current political climate had a negative impact on their well-being, with 53 percent stating it had a significant effect. Their 2024 survey also found that 39 percent of LGBTQ+ youth seriously considered suicide in the previous year, with the number rising to 46 percent for transgender and non-binary youth.
Married and LGBTQ+ couples with children
LGBTQ+ and same-sex married couples with children face challenges that include social and legal discrimination, difficulties with adoption and parental rights. Negative societal reactions, like children being bullied for having same-sex parents.
Parents receiving intrusive questions about their family structure are becoming increasingly more commonplace as politics and culture swing to the right, especially in rural areas and smaller towns throughout the country.
The challenges to LGBTQ+ rights all too often result in genuine fear for many of these families. While same-sex marriage is generally considered stable – by some – the far-right influence on federal protections, healthcare and social attitudes has created an overwhelmingly hostile environment. Organizations like the ACLU have warned that Trump’s latest stint in the White House could remove existing federal nondiscrimination guarantees related to housing, healthcare , and Social Security for LGBTQ+ individuals and their families.
Despite the Respect for Marriage Act, which provides some federal protection for same-sex couples, the security of marriage equality is a concern for many families. Some MAGA-aligned political figures have openly expressed disapproval of same-sex marriage, and radical right-wing appointees on the Supreme Court, such as Justice Clarence Thomas, have indicated a willingness to reconsider the constitutional right to marry.
Seniors
The impact on LGBTQ+ seniors has included targeted rollbacks of non-discrimination protections, elimination of specific funding for LGBTQ+ programming, and rhetoric that results in fear and isolation. These actions are particularly damaging to a vulnerable population that is more likely to age without a partner or children and often depends on publicly funded social services.
Recent reconciliation laws passed under the Trump administration could eliminate or reduce Medicare coverage and SNAP benefits for millions of low-income older adults, threatening the health and financial security of many LGBTQ+ seniors who depend on these programs.
The LGBTQ+ senior organization SAGE reported significant cuts to its federal grant funding due to executive orders restricting grants promoting “gender ideology.” These funds support crucial programs for older adults who are twice as likely as their heterosexual peers to grow old without a significant other, and four times more likely to have no children.
LGBTQ+ seniors are also more predisposed to end up in nursing homes where they may fear discrimination and be forced to hide their identity. Organizations like SAGE, which provide sensitivity training to elder care workers, face funding cuts that could eliminate these critical programs. Removal of funding from organizations that support LGBTQ+ seniors can create a culture of fear that can lead to increased separation from community for older adults who rely on these services for community and support.
As of February 2025, the Trump administration has once again taken steps to repeal the “Equal Access Rule,” which protects LGBTQ+ people from discrimination in HUD-funded housing and shelters. The potential re-enactment of these policies could worsen housing discrimination for LGBTQ+ older adults.
This combination of discriminatory concepts and policies and inflammatory rhetoric can create significant anxiety and stress for LGBTQ+ seniors, impacting their overall mental well-being.
What can we do?
The impact of Donald Trump and the MAGA movement’s policies and rhetoric on the LGBTQ+ community impacts like a shower of bullets coming from multiple directions simultaneously. We’re seeing a reduction in civil rights protections, a decrease in funding for essential support services , and the creation of a hostile environment that leads to fear and social detachment.
In lieu of this information, the question remaining is a simple one: Wwhat can we do?
The answer, however, is not simple, especially when you consider that Trump and his supporters in and outside of congress are seemingly dead set on achieving their goals. Multiple sources across the internet offer a multitude of advice for your own well-being: Ddisconnect from the news, connect with trusted support, utilize crisis resources, find LGBTQ+ affirming therapists, stay informed on policy changes, secure legal documents, advocate for state and local protections, join local LGBTQ+ groups and register to vote.
The most important thing to do in a world like this: survive.
If it’s within your means and something you feel the need to do (depending on your life circumstances), look into the possibility of relocation. Be it a move to a blue state or a different country, Or, staying put. You can lay low or fight for your rights where you are. You know your environment and what is the best path.
Do what is feasible and right for you.