logo
episode-header-image
Jun 2022
55m 12s

The war on trans people

Vox
About this episode

Vox’s Emily St. James talks with Chase Strangio of the ACLU about the assault on the rights of trans Americans taking place in many states across the country. They explain why laws that recently passed through state houses in Florida, Texas, and Alabama imperil trans people — or, in some cases, even criminalize their very existence. Chase and Emily discuss the ongoing legal battles to challenge these laws, the political and social obstacles facing the trans community, and how all Americans can help protect trans people through challenging some fundamental assumptions in our culture.

Host: Emily St. James (@emilyvdw), Senior Correspondent, Vox

Guest: Chase Strangio (@chasestrangio), Deputy Director for Transgender Justice, ACLU

References: 


Enjoyed this episode? Rate Vox Conversations ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

Subscribe for free. Be the first to hear the next episode of Vox Conversations by subscribing in your favorite podcast app.

Support Vox Conversations by making a financial contribution to Vox! bit.ly/givepodcasts

This episode was made by: 

  • Producer: Erikk Geannikis
  • Editor: Amy Drozdowska
  • Engineer: Patrick Boyd
  • Deputy Editorial Director, Vox Talk: Amber Hall

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Up next
Aug 18
So, what exactly is the “New Right?”
A loose movement of radical intellectuals is driving American politics. They’re called the “New Right,” and they share a basic hostility to American liberal democracy, a real desire to fundamentally overhaul it, and real influence in the White House. But why do they think that? H ... Show More
51m 36s
Aug 11
America is losing big on sports betting
Almost every tech platform is designed to grab and hold your attention, to keep you clicking, scrolling, and buying for as long as possible. Sports gambling has become one of the clearest examples of this. The industry has created frictionless apps on your phone that let you bet ... Show More
53m 49s
Aug 4
It’s time to get weird
The internet was supposed to set us free. But somewhere along the way, it became a tool for surveillance, extraction, and control. What happened? And is there still time to reclaim the weird, untapped potential of the digital world? This week, Sean is joined by Douglas Rushkoff. ... Show More
1 h
Recommended Episodes
Aug 2023
Reclaiming the Trans Narrative w/ Chase Strangio and Miss Peppermint
Chase Strangio is Deputy Director for Transgender Justice with the ACLU’s LGBT & HIV Project, and a nationally recognized expert on transgender rights. Miss Peppermint is an actress, musical performer, and she nearly won season 9 of RuPaul’s Drag race. She's become the ACLU’s fir ... Show More
54m 21s
Mar 2024
Trans Athletes Fight For Rights
The federal government announced on Thursday some upcoming changes to the next Census. The form will consolidate two existing questions about race and ethnicity into one question. There will also be a longer list of race categories for people to select from, along with the abilit ... Show More
24m 23s
Mar 2022
The Waves: The GOP’s All-Out Assault on Trans People
On this week’s episode of The Waves, we’re talking Texas. Slate community manager Evan Urquhart and author and co-host of Slate’s Outward podcast Jules Gill-Peterson dig into the Texas governor’s directive to treat gender-affirming health care for transgender youth as child abuse ... Show More
45m 56s
May 2023
The Weeds, Live – Anti-trans legislation, explained
In recent years, there’s been a dramatic increase in the number of anti-LGBTQ bills introduced in state legislatures across the country. The ACLU is currently tracking 474 such bills, the majority of which target transgender rights. Meanwhile, trans people are over four times mor ... Show More
45m 30s
May 2021
How Anti-Trans Bills Evoke The Culture Wars Of The 90s
Proponents of trans female athlete bans struggle to cite examples of trans women or girls gaining an unfair advantage in sports competitions. But amid a lot of debate about fairness, there's been less attention on science. NPR sports correspondent Tom Goldman spoke to a pioneerin ... Show More
15m 23s
Dec 2023
Transgender Marxism Against the Backlash (A Spectre Live Presentation)
Join trans theorists and activists for a discussion of how "Transgender Marxism” can explain the backlash and help guide the resistance. This event took place on July 16, 2023. The right has launched a systematic backlash against trans people. It has introduced hundreds of anti-t ... Show More
1h 16m
Apr 2023
Trans Liberation and Solidarity with Alyson Escalante
Our transgender comrades are under attack — not just by incendiary reactionaries on the right, but also by many of those on the more liberal or even left side of the political spectrum. The attacks come in many forms, from outright violence, to genocidal language, to the often ar ... Show More
1h 8m
Jun 2023
Carving a Path to Equality for Transgender People
Control over the rights of transgender children continue to leave folks in a frenzy. Janet Mock discusses her work on the groundbreaking FX series “Pose” and reflects on being the first transgender woman of color to write and direct for a TV series. Plus, Jessica Williams speaks ... Show More
34m 52s
Oct 2023
We Need Better Narratives About Gender
It’s a time of contrast and contradiction for gender queerness in America: At the same time that about 5 percent of Americans under 30 identify as transgender or nonbinary, over 20 states have passed some sort of restriction on gender-affirming care for children. In 2023 alone, o ... Show More
1h 5m
Listen to millions of songs and podcasts on Anghami