John,

This month and every month, I’m advocating for LGBTQ+ people’s rights. Earlier this month I had the joy of celebrating my LGBTQ+ loved ones and neighbors at Livonia Pride and Detroit’s Motor City Pride:

As millions of us celebrate Pride around the country this month, Republicans are trying to undo essential protections for LGBTQ+ people, particularly transgender people.  

Soon, the Senate will vote on a budget bill that would take away medically necessary, lifesaving gender-affirming care from people on Medicaid.

The Supreme Court just upheld Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for minors—even though studies have shown that such care (which includes reversible puberty blockers) decreases the risk of suicide among trans youth by over 70%. This will make life even harder for people living in the 27 states that restrict gender-affirming care.

To add to this crisis, Trump just announced that he’s shutting down the national LGBTQ+ suicide hotline—as calls to crisis hotlines have surged with Republicans in power. This is part of a coordinated effort across the country to systematically eradicate trans people.

Lawmakers from the state to federal level need to step up and defend their trans constituents. Will you sign the petition today demanding Congress pass policies to protect trans people, rather than policies that will kill trans people?

We also must invest in LGBTQ+ community programs. For example, I’ve secured $1 million in federal funding to support the Ruth Ellis Center, which provides safe, affordable, identity-affirming housing for marginalized Black and brown Detroiters, especially LGBTQ+ young people.

I’m in the Equality Caucus in Congress, and I’ve introduced policies like:

• The Justice For All Act, which would expand civil rights protections to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.

• The Youth Homelessness Guaranteed Income Pilot Program Act, which would provide direct cash assistance to unhoused young people. At least 40% of unhoused youth are LGBTQ+.

And I’ve been proud to support policies such as:

• The Transgender Health Care Access Act, which would expand access to live-saving, evidence-based gender-affirming care.

• The Transgender Bill of Rights, a Congressional resolution calling on the federal government to protect the rights of transgender and nonbinary people, including ensuring that trans people have access to gender-affirming care.

• The Equality Act, which would protect LGBTQ+ people from discrimination in jobs, housing, and public accommodations and guarantee them equal protection under the law.

As lawmakers across the country jeopardize trans people’s lives, we must urgently defend trans people and build support for pro-LGBTQ+ policies in Congress.

Please add your name to demand Congressmembers vote against any policies that would threaten trans people and other LGBTQ+ people’s rights and lives—and vote FOR policies like the Justice for All Act, the Transgender Health Care Access Act, and the Transgender Bill of Rights.

Thank you so much for taking action and standing up for the LGBTQ+ community. It’s essential to keep doing so in this dangerous political climate that’s dehumanizing trans people and other marginalized communities. We must speak up to affirm that all life is sacred, that all of us deserve to exist and thrive, and that no one is disposable.

To anyone reading this who is trans or nonbinary: You deserve joy and safety, and you belong here. You have the right to be seen and loved for who you are. I value and respect you, and I promise to keep fighting for you.

In solidarity,

Rashida

P.S. Trans Lifeline runs a crisis hotline with trans operators providing peer support for trans and nonbinary people in need. If you need support or are in crisis, you can text or call their hotline at (877) 565-8860. They also have a library of posts to read for trans people and allies at https://translifeline.org/resources.