In the near future the trans community is devastated by political trends. We join a support group meeting to learn more.

“Bing” - another text on the phone as Maddie drove along the dark street. The boarded up buildings and uncollected trash were a depressing sight compared to what had once been a lively neighborhood that embraced diversity. A few years ago this street had been known as a 'gayborhood" with nearly every business displaying either the rainbow and chevrons progress pride flag or the blue, white, and pink transgender flag. Windows had "all are welcome here" or "equality" signs. Clubs, bars, and trendy restaurants here were city-wide favorites attracting patrons of all genders, orientations, and identities. Boutique clothing stores stocked both fashions and essentials. There were even several independent booksellers that used curated selection and customer service to compete against the internet giant. But society had reverted to its old patriarchal and fundamentalist ways and the neighborhood went into a steep decline as the LGBTQ community dispersed, businesses failed, and corporate investors scooped up the affordable apartments.

Maddie grabbed the phone from her bag for a quick glance even though she knew the dangers of texting and driving. That danger seemed trivial compared to current events.

Meeting moved. I am at 10th and Broadway. K.

Maddie tensed. Why was tonight's meeting moved at the last minute? She turned around and headed back toward 10th street. Her thoughts turned to recent events that impacted her life and identity and she had trouble focusing on her driving.

The previous year had been bad enough with anti-trans culture war ads filling the airways in the months before the election. She had fallen into deep depression as the results came in, but the support group lead by Reverend K had help her recover for a while. Maddie along with many of her friends had worked on the campaigns of progressive candidates but did not take the election seriously enough. Most people never believed the more extreme campaign speeches, and they assumed that after the election normal disfunction would return to Washington and the state legislatures. But with the new right-wing officials taking office the worst fears were becoming reality.

Every day there was another news story about new harassment of anyone who dared violate the sacred, cis-white male privileged gender binary: Bans on gender-affirming care first for minors, but soon bans for adults too; Legal actions against medical professionals who had offered care; Parents being charged with child abuse for daring to support their children. The trickle that began a few years ago was becoming a flood. The once vibrant LBGTQAI+ community center had closed after months of attacks by hostile politicians and fundamentalist preachers had driven both clients and donors away. Some community center programs and activities had already withered, but others simply relocated to alternative venues. The young adult support group meetings had moved to a nearby queer-friendly coffee shop located in a half-closed strip mall. Maddie had come to depend on the regular support group meetings as a way to embrace her identity while helping others.

She turned into the deserted parking lot on the corner of Broadway, glanced around, and saw the familiar vintage van with faded lavender paint parked toward the back of the lot. Inside sat Reverend K, the support group facilitator, and a nervous-looking high school girl named Danielle. Maddie pulled up along side and rolled down the window.

"Maddie, glad to see you. We had to move our meeting because someone was staking out the coffee shop and taking pictures of anyone going in."

"What?"

"No time to talk. I can explain later. Turn off your phone right now so you cannot be tracked. Here is a map with directions to our location tonight. Go, follow the indirect route I mapped, and don't linger here."

As Maddie drove off she realized that this was serious. Taking down car license plate numbers and photographing people entering or leaving buildings was semi-legal but very effective way to intimidate anyone whose identity or lifestyle benefited from normal expectations of privacy. The initial stakeouts at the community center had been effective in shutting down the outdoor sports program for questioning youth. Big deal, she thought. Coed volleyball was the same sport no matter whether the clothes the players wore matched what was between their legs. The stakeouts continued and soon other transgender related activities began losing participation too. Eventually the community center closed and the zealots were tracking down where the few surviving gender identity programs that had relocated.

As a distraction she turned on the car radio and hit the button for her favorite jazz and country music station. Immediately she realized it was the scheduled time for the local issues call-in. She heard the whining voice of Mrs. Rudeka, a local anti-trans activist, ranting about a long-discredited rumor that the high-school had tampon dispensers in all the boys' restrooms. She slammed the off button and started looking for the next turn.

The map took Maddie through an industrial area and then to a small office park that housed a few technology companies. Working from home and outsourcing had left a glut of office space, but place seemed surprising busy for the time of day. Maddie realized that these offices were likely communicating with colleagues in India or China where it was morning of the next day. She parked and walked to the indicated suite number and found that the door was propped open and a light was on in the conference room.

"Hello, Casey. Do you know what is going on with the meeting tonight?"

"Not sure; Reverend K just told me to go here and she would be along soon. I was the first to arrive, but the door was unlocked so I went in. Glad you showed up. I didn't like being alone here."

"Do you know who else is coming?"

"I think it will be a very small group tonight. All the regulars have been moving out of state or disappearing into the closet. No one wants to be publicly associated with transgender support groups anymore; it is like painting a target on your back."

"Casey, older transwomen have told me about what it was like back when being gay was illegal and being trans was considered a mental illness. Connecting with support groups in those days involved initial phone calls using code words, an interview to be sure you were not a police informant or worse, and finally an invitation to a secret meeting place."

"We are definitely going backwards in this country. Speaking of 'secret,' did you turn off your phone? It seems that someone has been hacking into cell phone data and creating lists of phone IDs that frequent queer-friendly locations. Since we all go home and to work on a regular schedule it is easy to associate so-called anonymous phone network ID numbers with specific people."

"Creepy! Here comes Reverend K. and Danielle."

Reverend K approached the office suite door, glanced over her shoulder, then quickly ushered Danielle inside. She closed and locked the door. She hesitated and then scribbled a note saying "Knock if you arrive late. K" and inserted the sheet of paper between the blind and the glass.

"Welcome everyone. Danielle, will you take the refreshments from my bag and put them on the table. Maddie, will you take a copy of this emergency contact form and give the other to Casey? Thanks."

"Paper forms? Why don't you just put the information on your phone?"

"I have been scrubbing my phone of all sensitive contacts, passwords, emails, and photos. When I finally get arrested I do not want to give those gender terrorists any evidence!

"I will continue my work as a counselor and minister until they come for me. There is plenty they can charge me with. Even giving a minor a car ride to gender-affirming care in another state has become a federal felony."

Maddie trembled. "It reminds me of the pre-Civil War Fugitive Slave Law where sheriffs in free states were required to arrest runaways and ship them back South."

"Things go in cycles. We just happen to be in an awful time again."

Reverend K dropped into a chair at head of the the conference table and motioned for the others to sit. She took a deep breath, bowed her head, and meditated in silence. Eventually she looked up and made eye contact with each girl in turn.

"Tonight will be our last support group meeting. Sorry, but has become impossible to continue; it is becoming too dangerous. Any moment we could hear the police knocking because they managed to track one of us here either electronically or just by physical surveillance. Did everyone turn off your phones as I asked? Did you suspect anyone was following you driving here? OK, good.

"Only the four of us managed to get here tonight. In the last month five of our regulars contacted me by encrypted messaging saying they did not dare come in person any more; I sent them the time and location anyway in case they change their mind. I know that three others have moved out of state in the hope that more progressive jurisdictions will offer safety and protection from any extradition request. I wish them luck. Meanwhile, four more transgirls simply disappeared from any electronic communication - emails bounce, texts are not delivered, and the phone number is disconnected. I can only hope and pray that they are safe and will contact me if they need help.

"Before we do our usual around the table discussion I will report on on our friend Leslie who will not be here tonight. I met with Leslie and her mother a couple of weeks ago in the back corner of one of the last trans-friendly restaurants in the city. As you all know Leslie has never come out, and her gender identity has been kept secret by her mother and a few close friends. At school she presents as a quiet, nerdy, and somewhat effeminate boy. Somehow the zealots suspected that she expresses her feminine side at home and started sending threatening messages. With her mother's support Leslie as made the brave decision to continue her transition in secret and deny any accusations. Due to the new laws she cannot get any medical interventions in this state. Travel for treatment has risks, and her mother cannot move at this time. Lisa plans to rely on strict diet and potent herbal supplements and hope that this will help for a while. She will most likely appear frail for the rest of middle school and high school. She knows she will be bullied for her mannerisms and appearance but feels that her circle of performing arts friends will have her back. Beyond that she does not have a plan yet. I told her that back in the dark ages of the 60's and 70's many trans girls were forced to live closeted lives and some took the risky path of self-medicating. Her mother suspects that the zealots had tracked Leslie down through her involvement with this group; we agreed that further contact would be unwise. I gave her mother a list of emergency resources including a group that helps transgender children flee to safe places. We bowed our heads, I offered a short prayer, and wished them adios and godspeed."

There was a long silence in the room. Reverend K respected the emotional state everyone was in but needed to keep the meeting moving. The longer they were together the more dangerous it would become. "Casey, you are next. Do you want to tell us what happened to your family or should I help?"

Casey was a high-school senior who normally presented as a confident and beautiful young woman. She had started transitioning while young and passed easily. Tonight she began in a trembling voice "I think Leslie is being very brave, but is taking a huge risk.

She paused to catch her breath. "A lot has happened since we last met. My mother was arrested and charged with child abuse for giving me access to my hormones. I had transitioned socially back in middle school so everyone knew I considered myself transgender and anyone looking at me suspected I was transitioning medically even though that was now illegal. Mother was stubborn and defiant when the state legislature started passing anti-trans bills. She wanted to fight even though that made both of us more visible. It was only a matter of time before the police came for us, but when it finally happened it was still terrifying. I was placed in juvenile detention while mother waited for her allies to bail her out of jail. The guards at the detention center delighted in shoving me though the door of the male unit and then laughed as they heard the lewd jokes starting inside. It was a night of hell, but at least I was not sexually violated before the lawyer from Lambda Legal got me released."

"What is going to happen to the two of you next?"

"I do not want to give too many specifics in case any of you are questioned by the police. We are going to skip bail, forfeit the assets mother pledged, and leave the country. There are still some civilized places in the world where a transwoman can get medical care and live in peace."

"Danielle, your turn is next if you have anything you want to share."

Danielle was the youngest regular member of the support group and had been coming for almost a year. She had been attending a pre-teen and middle school age support group at the LGBTQAI+ community center, but that program had shut down after the administration received an official letter from the state attorney general accusing them of "grooming" children and threatening prosecution. Danielle was allowed to switch support groups because she showed a remarkable level of maturity for her age. The roster for the group meeting tonight showed her being 18 not 15.

"I don't want to talk tonight. My family is in total turmoil. Mom and dad cannot agree on any sort of plan for my future."

"Thank you for allowing me to bring you here tonight. I know you are scared and hearing others share their experiences will help you cope. I will get you back home soon. OK, that leaves you Maddie"

Maddie was 21 and legally an adult, but that gave her limited comfort. Greedy politicians had used trans kids as a culture war weapon to inflame their base. Protecting minors was their justification for the first wave of anti-trans laws but trans adults were their next target. She recently got a letter from her health insurance company declaring that state law no longer allowed private insurance companies to pay for any gender related care. Worse, both the psychologist and the endocrinologist who had been treating her had moved out of state to avoid prosecution for treating. She had no idea of how she was going to continue to get health care even as a adult woman.

"I really need to talk about everything that has happened since the last election. There have always been bigots and people who want to legislate what they think is morality. People who are totally hostile to LGBTQ individuals are taking over our government. We have seen it in other countries and we should have realized how serious the danger was.

"You know, I have been an activist on environmental and gender issues ever since high school. But I didn't fight as hard as I could have before the last election. I ....., I did a little phone banking and talking to acquaintances. A little wasn't enough and .... The election was so close, I just ..." Tears were forming.

"Maddie, have a sip of juice. We all feel the same way. Continue when you are ready."

"You know what upsets me is the people who said they never vote because it does not make any difference. Well, who wins the election does matter. Look at what is happening to our community and our human rights.

"We all seemed to think that the sexist, misogynistic, anti-trans speeches by certain candidates were just a performance. We never believed that they really meant what they were saying. Now they have been elected and we are being hounded and persecuted for who we are.

"Elections have consequences!

Readers: PLEASE

VOTE IN NOVEMBER!