Do you feel safe and validated (on the whole) on DU? If not, how can we help?

[BootOutTheGoons]

8. No. And no. I don't feel safe nor validated

I don't think there is a single trans person on DU who feels safe or validated. I'd say it's more like the opposite: We feel unsafe, unwanted and hated.

It's bad enough that every freaking day we have to hear MAGA spew their hatred for us and how much they want us all gone. Then we come here and it feels like we get more of the same.

How long has it been now of using "defending girls sports" to punch down on the trans community? How many years? Meanwhile, the loudest and meanest on that subject have nothing to actually say about women's sports. They're not discussing the WNBA. They had nothing to say when an adult male high school coach grabbed one of his own players by her hair. They're silent when MAGA goes after female athletes. But the second there's a story with a whiff of trans to it? Hundreds of replies, many of them downright hostile.

I've seen far too much misgendering and deadnaming. I've seen people get away with saying "men do not belong in women's spaces" - which is basically calling trans women "men".

Along those lines, I saw a thread several days ago where someone used AI to make a picture of trump in a yellow dress so he'd resemble a chicken, calling him "TACO Belle". I'm all for blasting that fascist monster... but that was basically "Hey everyone, look at trump in a dress! HAHAHA!" It was transphobic in nature.

I've seen gender affirming care attacked, especially that care for trans youth. Because "my body, my choice" seems to magically disappear when it comes to trans people trying to find lifesaving care and live our lives in peace and comfort, instead of misery and suffering.

I've seen people come up to bat for JK Rowling, Charlie Kirk and even Dan Crenshaw. Rowling has done nothing for years but attack trans people. Did she have anything to say when Roe got overturned? How about any other women's issue? No. Because Rowling doesn't give a fuck about women, she merely hates trans people. I've seen multiple people try to claim that Kirk never called for eradicating trans people, when he has indeed said those very words many times over the years. And then Crenshaw... REPUBLICAN Representative Dan Crenshaw. Who is full on MAGA. Who does nothing but spew hate. But I'm out of line for attacking him because "he lost his eye fighting for this country!" Yeah? He clearly didn't fight for me, because one of his primary goals since being elected is to cause great harm to people like me.

So he's allowed to work to kill me, but I'm supposed to kiss his ass?!

"This is the hill we're going to die on?" Seen plenty of that too. Failing to get that unless people start working to protect trans rights and trans lives, trans people are going to die. But... That's okay because we're such a small group? Because everyone fucking hates us anyway?

I've seen and experienced all of this here.

But then let's talk about the last seven months, shall we? Where it's been open season on trans people because "you cost us the election!" I don't think one single day has gone by on DU without people (usually the same people) claiming trans people and us wanting our rights and lives protected is what got TACO put back in the White House. We've been scapegoated constantly. We've been attacked constantly. Protecting trans rights and trans lives "is why we lose elections!" It never stops. Some of them repeatedly say it in coded words... Some come right out and just say it. "Losing issue" and "this is why we lose elections" and other such statements.

On that subject, let's talk about coded bigotry. Using slurs is easy, and many of us know the various slurs that minorities and people who aren't white straight cisgender males have to hear. But we have far too many who think they are clever. For instance, for many years, racists thought they were cute by using "welfare cheats" and "quotas" and "thugs" instead of the N-word. Now of course here in 2025, "DEI" has become the code word for people of color, or immigrants, or women, or LGBTQs... in other words, those who aren't white straight cisgender males.

Well, it's become part of the culture here. "Unpopular opinions/positions/issues" has effectively become a transphobic slur. Same with "real women". There are several other such statements that basically are being used as slurs because they feel that calling us "unpopular" will fly under the radar and they can get away with it.

"We can't talk about that here" has become a code phrase for "I agree with discriminating against trans people". The people using it over and over know there's a good chance they'll get in trouble if they say they agree with the bigots... So it's now coded as "We can't talk about that".

Our lives have become a living hell. We're under constant attack from the MAGA party. Then we come here and get more of that. I don't think a lot of people get it... or they do get it and this is the intended result. We're scared, we're hurt, we're struggling, and we feel like everyone wants us dead.

Nobody does shit. We're being thrown under the bus by everyone. And I do feel like there are more than a few on the left who would be overjoyed if people like me just hurried up and died.

I wish I could say that what I see here is out of ignorance... I can't. It feels malicious and it has for some time. If not since November 5, it started feeling that way not long after that.

I'm so tired and so hurt and so scared that... At this point, if the world wants me dead? Just hurry it up. Make it quick and painless and get it over with already.