A coalition of major LGBTQ+ rights organisations, including the Human Rights Campaign, GLAAD, and PFLAG, has issued a strong call to action to the Democratic National Committee (DNC), urging the party to step up its fight against the surge of anti-LGBTQ+ policies under Donald Trump’s administration and the broader Republican Party.
“The Party’s Leaders Must Do More”
In an open letter, the organisations acknowledged the efforts of Democratic leaders who have stood against discrimination but stressed that current measures are not enough:
“Elected Democratic officials have pushed back, voted no, exercised their veto authority, and stood up as champions for LGBTQ+ people, and particularly for the transgender community. We recognise and appreciate those efforts. But the party’s leaders simply must do more.”
The letter specifically criticised some Democratic officials for wavering on LGBTQ+ rights in an effort to compromise with Republicans, calling this approach dangerous and ineffective.
“Some have suggested a strategy of appeasement: that compromising with a little bit of discrimination against a particularly misunderstood and powerless segment of our community could satisfy anti-equality opponents… We can say unequivocally that this strategy will not work.”
The Trump Administration’s Aggressive Anti-LGBTQ+ Actions
Since returning to office, Donald Trump has escalated attacks on transgender rights, signing executive orders aimed at:
🚫 Erasing transgender identities from federal documents and institutions
🚫 Banning trans athletes from sports that don’t match their sex assigned at birth
🚫 Denying gender-affirming care to trans individuals under the age of 19
🚫 Restricting federal funding to institutions that acknowledge “gender ideology”
These actions have emboldened Republican-led states to introduce their own anti-LGBTQ+ policies. According to the ACLU, over 500 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced in 2025 alone.
🚨 Iowa became the first state to remove anti-discrimination protections for transgender people from its civil liberty code.
🚨 Republican lawmakers in five states have introduced resolutions asking the Supreme Court to overturn marriage equality.
Democrats Under Pressure to Take a Stronger Stand
Frustration is growing among liberals and LGBTQ+ advocates, who feel that Democratic leaders are not doing enough to push back against this wave of discrimination.
Even some high-profile Democrats have made concerning statements on transgender issues. For example, California Governor Gavin Newsom recently appeared on far-right activist Charlie Kirk’s podcast, where he described trans athletes competing in girls’ and women’s sports as “deeply unfair.”
The letter to the DNC concluded with a firm yet empathetic plea, recognising that political leaders may not always have full understanding of LGBTQ+ issues, but emphasising that compromising on civil rights is unacceptable:
“It is okay to be a person, with good intentions, who doesn’t have all the answers… But it is unacceptable for prominent Democrats to give cover to anti-LGBTQ+ arguments.”
The signatories made it clear: Democrats must take a stronger, more unified stand against hate and discrimination—or risk failing the very communities they claim to support.
