Trump admin rolls back LGBTQ+ gains during Pride Month
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The Trump administration isn't celebrating Pride Month, but rather walking back initiatives to recognize LGBTQ+ communities.
The big picture: It's a part of a larger repeal of diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts by the administration, which have contributed to an increasingly hostile climate for LGBTQ+ people in the U.S., particularly for transgender individuals.
State of play: White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday that the White House has "no plans" to make a proclamation for the month of June.
- That marks a reversal from the yearly "Pride Month" proclamations and elaborate celebrations under former President Biden.
- Meanwhile, the Department of Education on Tuesday announced it's recognizing June as Title IX Month, "commemorating women and celebrating their struggle for, and achievement of, equal educational opportunity."
Flashback: Trump didn't issue presidential proclamations celebrating Pride in his first term either, only marking the occasion with a social media post in 2019.
Zoom in: In the first few days of Pride Month, the administration has taken steps to target LGBTQ+ recognition efforts.
- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the Navy to rename a ship that bears the name of gay rights pioneer Harvey Milk. Hegseth is "committed to ensuring that the names attached to all DOD installations and assets are reflective of the Commander-in-Chief's priorities, our nation's history, and the warrior ethos," Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement.
- The FBI on Monday requested tips from the public on hospitals, clinics or practitioners performing gender-affirming surgeries to youth, putting that care among transgender youth under close scrutiny.
- Trump threatened to cut funding to California if it continues to allow transgender athletes to compete in women's sports, doubling down this week after a trans high schooler won state championships. "President Trump is protecting women in sports and restoring common sense," spokesperson Harrison Fields told Axios Tuesday.
- The National Park Service planned to close Dupont Circle in D.C. to bar people from celebrating Pride, but later reverted.
Between the lines: Minnesota state Rep. Leigh Finke told Axios that while acts of violence are not directly tied to the Trump administration, his policies and the "language of dehumanization and ... language of eradication" have consequences.
- Transgender and gender-nonconforming people were the target of over half of all anti-LGBTQ+ incidents tracked by GLAAD over the last year.
- Trump has singled out the transgender community in several executive orders, jeopardizing federal recognition for people's declared gender identity and access to services like gender-affirming health care.
- Ongoing court cases meanwhile, including one about gender-affirming care for minors before the Supreme Court, could affect LGBTQ+ rights.
Our thought bubble via Axios' Russell Contreras: Trump's pullback on Pride comes as the nation is set the celebrate the fourth anniversary of Juneteenth becoming a national holiday.
- The administration has reinterpreted Civil Rights-era laws to focus on "anti-white racism" and the so-called discrimination of white Christians, which have been dismissed by experts.
The White House did not respond to Axios' request for comment.
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