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During this past Trans Awareness Week, 10 leaders from diverse religious traditions issued statements. statement It declares that transgender, intersex, and non-binary people are worthy of being loved, supported, and protected. Led by Reverend Sophia Betancourt, President of the Unitarian Universalist Association, Universal Fellowship of the Metropolitan Community Church, Affirming Ministries Fellowship, Union of Reform Judaism, Presbyterian Church, Church of Christ (Disciples of Christ), Episcopal Church, United Church of Christ , proclaims that representatives of Reconstruction Judaism have called for violent and systematic persecution of transgender people and encouraged non-binary, intersex, and queer people to affirm that their faith and humanity make trans, intersex, and queer people “sacred” and “holy.”

Their statement came at a critical time. Over the past three months, President Trump and his Cabinet’s anti-transgender rhetoric has only intensified. report published In late September, a national security official revealed in an article by journalist Ken Klippenstein that the FBI plans to classify transgender people as “extremists.” Classifying transgender people as “nihilistic violent extremists”, like Abby Montil, will give far-right groups more “political (and media) coverage.” report of theycalling for anti-trans violence and legislation.

While this news is frightening, it is not unprecedented. The fight against transgender rights and the classification of transgender people as violent extremists Contains In Project 2025, and in the past few weeks, far-right leaders’ transphobic campaigns have expanded. Boycott Netflix to pressure platforms to remove trans characters; Utilization of anti-trans attack advertisements Virginia gubernatorial election Professors are prohibited from entering or leaving From acknowledging that transgender people exist. In fact, last month, two Republican senators called for the following: Institutionalization of transgender people.

The government shutdown appears to have been premised, at least in part, on President Trump’s initiative. anti-trans policy It was added as a special provision to the spending bill.

This is a dangerous escalation of transphobic violence, and the Human Rights Campaign classifies it as a dangerous act. infectious disease. According to Keep Gun Safety in Everytown The number of transgender people murdered in the United States nearly doubled between 2017 and 2021, according to a report released in 2020. According to data released by the February 2024 Gun Safety Report, 34 percent of gun homicides were of transgender, nonbinary, and gender-expansive people. remains unresolved.

For Tori Cooper, director of community engagement for the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Transgender Justice Initiative, this violence has a purpose. “Hate against transgender and members of the gender-expansive community is fueled by disinformation, rhetoric, and ideology that treats our communities as political pawns, ignoring the fact that we have the opportunity to live life to the fullest without fear of harm or death.” cooper said.

In a statement, religious leaders condemned this escalating violence and affirmed the spiritual and human imperative to protect transgender, nonbinary, intersex, and queer people. Leaders acknowledge that, historically and today, religion is used as a weapon of hatred to degrade and deny the human dignity of LGBTQ+ people. The Supreme Court is hearing Chiles v. Salazar, A lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Colorado’s ban on conversion therapy for minors. The majority of conversion therapy Practice based on faith. And despite the Supreme Court refuse to listen A lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of same-sex marriage Obergefell vs. Hodges, Efforts to end marriage equality continue today Katie Faust’s Obergefell End Movement.

“At a time when our nation’s lives are increasingly threatened, there is a shameful misconception that not all people of faith affirm the full spectrum of gender, and many of us do. Instead, let us know that our loved ones are created in the image of a holy and perfect God,” the statement said.

Religious leaders argue that not all faith communities believe in religiously motivated efforts to celebrate LGBTQ people or deny their dignity and rights, and that far-right Christian nationalist communities and those who support homophobia and are trying to toughen it wholesale in the United States do not speak for all faith leaders.

This is an important part of the statement and is based on historical precedent. During the AIDS crisis of the 1980s, when far-right Christian leaders like Jerry Falwell, one of the founders of the Moral Majority, said that HIV was “God’s punishment” for LGBTQ+ people and indicative of widespread moral decline in America, faith communities emerged that affirmed the dignity and divinity of homosexual people. as funeral home and the church refused To prepare and bury the dead, some faith communities argued that these homophobic leaders did not speak on behalf of all people of faith.

1985 General Synod of the United Church of Christ called upon the member congregation It claimed and declared itself “open and affirming” to show its welcome and support for LGBTQ+ people. And two years later, the Church of the Brethren issued a statement In the conference, titled “A Call to Mercy,” conference members called on their congregations to boldly speak out against discrimination, provide direct care to people living with HIV/AIDS, and actively educate themselves and others to stop the spread of fear and stigma surrounding the disease.

Just one year later, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America Council of Churches issued a statement, “AIDS and the Church’s Compassionate Ministry” outlined how the way we welcome, serve, and advocate on behalf of people living with HIV/AIDS is important to the Church’s mission. Even the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops met earlier this month. Prohibiting gender-affirming care At a Catholic hospital, issued a statement In 1987, he called discrimination against people infected with HIV/AIDS “unjust and immoral” and condemned labeling patients as “innocent” or “guilty.”

Last week’s statements from faith leaders therefore build on a rich history of faith communities taking action to combat the stigmas perpetuated by far-right faith groups about LGBTQ+ people. What sets this latest statement apart is its distinctly interfaith heart, which speaks to the history of Pride Interfaith Services in Washington, D.C., which was first started by a group of faith leaders and laity who gathered at the Quilt at the AIDS Memorial.

“Our scriptures are different, but we have a common belief. When we make justice our purpose, we must give voice to those who have been silenced. Our common values, held across many faiths, are that we are all children of God and that we are not alone, especially when it comes to difficult situations.” That is why we raise our voices in solidarity to clearly proclaim the sacredness of transgender, non-binary and intersex people and the recognition of all people’s range of gender identity and expression. ”

The statement ended by insisting that we needed to condemn the violence we were witnessing. They argue that their silence complies with and reinforces the idea that homophobic religious leaders and followers speak on behalf of all people of faith. But their statement is more than just words: it is a written promise that not only affirms the dignity and sanctity of homosexual people, but also protects them in the face of increasing violence and persecution.

“When people of faith and conscience remain silent in the face of oppression, the wholeness of all of us is compromised. When people of faith and conscience speak out against those who violate the sacred in their name, we have the power to stop the hand of sin. Transgender, nonbinary, and intersex people are vulnerable today,” the statement concluded.

“Our faith, our theology, and our practice of prophetic witness call upon transgender people to say in unison: ‘You are sacred. You are sacred. We love you. We support you and we will protect you.'”