Wavering ‘Allies’ and the Threat of Reaction
There are many fears which come to mind when considering the paths a declining American empire may take, yet none stand out as so empty, so colorless and lifeless, as our political system following the way laid out by the United Kingdom. By this, I mean American politics now runs the risk of an already center-right Democratic Party modeling itself after the British Labour Party of recent years, responding to the empire’s continuing crisis and the tides of fascism with a blanket right-wing pivot, promising a cold, managed decline for the nation while surrendering to reactionaries on an issue most personal to me, transgender rights. This hideous fate for America would preferably remain a hypothetical, yet, as the 2024 election cycle rolls along, scenes from the campaign trail point towards the basis for a Labour-esque transphobia triumphing among Democratic Party elites. In detailing this basis, it is first important to establish the exact path the UK Labour Party followed towards an alliance with social reaction. This was a path of waffling rhetoric ending in hard policy concessions to the right. Prior to his ascension as Prime Minister, Labour leader Keir Starmer pursued incomprehensible, often contradictory rhetoric on trans rights, with observers noting his vague promises to simplify the transition process and his standing up for a murdered trans teen’s family, contrasted with his fearmongering on trans identities being taught in schools and cozying up to transphobic rhetoric on “biological” womanhood (Hansford). However, when push came to shove, this oblique rhetoric became quite straightforward reactionary policy on trans issues, as following the Labour Party’s landslide election into office this summer, the Starmer government instituted sharp restrictions on life-saving transition care for minors (New). Taking all of this in mind, the path of the Labour Party towards becoming an empty, conservative husk of itself is clear, starting in rhetoric desperately stretched to appease the right, before metastasizing into plainly transphobic social policy.
The essential question now is whether this bleak pivot on the part of the Labour Party is identifiable as a pivot-in-waiting for the Democratic Party, with recent events in the 2024 campaign cycle providing an emphatic yes. The American right holds an enduring loathing of trans existence, and as election day nears, transphobic GOP ads targeting Democrats have appeared in numerous races. The Democratic response to these ads is nothing short of enlightening and terrifying. Nationally, Democratic strategists have been quoted as considering Donald Trump’s ads targeting Kamala Harris on trans athletes to be “killer,” declaring trans rights to be a “bleak” issue for Democrats (Allen). This attitude among party elites found its application in the Texas Senate race, where earlier this month, Democratic nominee Collin Allred fired back on Republican opponent Ted Cruz’s ads targeting trans youth participating in sports by conceding the issue, with his campaign running an ad in which Allred proclaims he doesn’t want “boys playing girls’ sports,” refusing to challenge the transphobic logic of the Cruz advertisements aimed against a community of vulnerable young people (Wiggins). All in all, the picture is clear that Democratic Party strategists consider trans rights to be a liability to defend, with this sentiment already translating into instances of capitulation to transphobic right-wing rhetoric. Sound familiar? The Democratic Party is already exhibiting the early symptoms of Starmerism, and it is not difficult to imagine the party either conceding on policy matters of trans healthcare and existence if elected or blaming a loss this November on the party’s association with transgender rights. The basis exists for the Democratic Party to follow the way of Labour and take on a reactionary transphobia in the coming years. This analysis is not to spread doom and gloom for trans life in America. Rather, it is to provide the understanding that as the right-wing forges ahead on a transphobic moral panic, organizations such as the Democratic Party cannot be trusted to protect our community, lest they go down the path of Labour. Trans Americans must instead fortify ourselves. We must foster community among ourselves and build solidarity with other marginalized groups for when state repression rises and essential healthcare may be restricted. We ought to learn self-defense as the moral panic intensifies. We should decide who our allies are in state and local governments as reactionaries seek every lever of power to nullify trans existence. Finally, we must read the political tea leaves, always prepared for the course of American imperial decline to take a turn to the detriment of trans life. Our leaders will abandon us, yet through solidarity, we will not need our leaders, and trans existence will survive as it has for thousands of years, a community persisting despite it all.
Works Cited
Allen, Jonathan, et al. “Trump Goes After Harris with Anti-Trans Ads During Football Games.” NBC News, 2024.
Hansford, Amelia. “Keir Starmer and Rishi Sunak's Views on Trans Rights: What's the Difference?" PinkNews, 2024.
“New Restrictions on Puberty Blockers.” United Kingdom Department of Health and Social Care, 2024.
Wiggins, Christopher. “Texas Dem Colin Allred Uses Anti-Trans Language to Attack Ted Cruz.” The Advocate, 2024.
Comments
Post a Comment