Take Action

Tell your Senators to vote NO on the anti-trans athlete ban! The House recently passed H.R. 28, a federal anti-trans athlete ban.  The Senate may consider the bill as early as next week. We need everyone to call and write their Senators NOW and tell them to vote NO.  

We are days into an administration that is working overtime, using ugly language to demean the values we hold dear, and taking actions to harm our loved ones and neighbors. Yet our LGBTQ+ community is strong, our stories are powerful, and our love is louder. Here are some things you can do, right now, to take positive action to strengthen rights for LGBTQ+ people and others in your community:

• Watch our Advocacy in 10 Minutes Or Less video series. Whether you’re advocating for the first time or bringing years of experience to the work, these short videos will help you become a stronger activist and advocate in your community.
• Contact your state legislators and tell them to respect trans kids. Regardless of where you live, this message is important for legislators to hear.
• Start attending your school and library board meetings to tell your local officials that their priority should be creating safe and inclusive school environments for all. 
• Sign up for your local state equality group newsletters to stay up to date on what’s happening in your state.

Georgians

Tell your State Senators to vote NO on SB 1. SB 1 – an anti-trans sports and school facilities ban – may be voted upon on the Senate floor as soon as next week. Contact your Senator TODAY and tell them to vote NO on this harmful bill!

Federal Matters

This section largely describes the executive orders signed by President Trump since January 20, 2025.  Many of these harmful actions directly target LGBTQ+ people, and transgender people and their families in particular are experiencing heightened stress as a result. Please know that executive orders do NOT override the United States Constitution, federal statutes, or established legal precedent. Many executive actions are required by law to follow a process before any changes can be implemented. Furthermore, for some of the President’s executive orders, litigation is not only expected but is also already happening. 

In response, PFLAG National has created a webpage of explainers and resources for these executive orders. This page will be updated frequently as we gather information from our many trusted coalition partners. Please use this information to inform your activism, advocacy, and media work.

President Trump signs executive order aiming to limit access to medically necessary care for trans and nonbinary youth. The order attempts to block all federal funding for puberty blockers, hormone replacement therapy, and other healthcare interventions for trans and nonbinary youth under 19. The order also directs federal agencies to rescind guidance from the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH),  which is widely used by healthcare professionals.

President Trump signs executive order seeking to limit classroom discussion of race, gender, sex, and politics. The order calls for the Secretary of Education - who has yet to be confirmed - to cut federal funding for schools that teach students about topics related to race, gender, and other groups. The order also calls for the attorney general to work with state and local authorities to pursue actions against school officials and teachers who support trans and nonbinary students in social transitioning.

New Memo From Federal Agency Takes Aim at Pronouns, Bathrooms, Gender Identity. An interdepartmental memo from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) instructs agency heads to immediately comply with the anti-trans executive order Trump signed on his first day back in office.

Office of Management and Budget (OPM) issues, then rescinds, memo calling for a pause on payments for federal grants and programs; Administration claims pause is still in effect. The OPM memo was originally issued on January 27th, causing widespread confusion about which programs were funded or not. On January 28th, a Federal judge blocked the pause in payments, and on January 29th, the memo was rescinded. However, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt added to the confusion around the payment pause by insisting that executive orders on funding reviews issued by President Trump "remain in full force and effect and will be rigorously implemented by all agencies and departments." 

Department of Education dismisses book ban complaints. The Department of Education dismissed 11 complaints about book bans the department received during the Biden administration. The department said it was ending former President Biden’s “book ban hoax,” and called the complaints about book removals “meritless” and based “upon a dubious legal theory.” 

Vice President Vance breaks tie to confirm Pete Hegseth as Defense Secretary. Mr. Hegseth is only the second cabinet nominee in history to be confirmed with a tie-breaking vote in the Senate; the first was Besty DeVos’ confirmation as Education Secretary in 2017. 

Senate confirms Scott Bessent as Treasury Secretary. Bessent is the second openly gay person to be confirmed to a cabinet position, after Pete Buttigieg’s confirmation as Transportation Secretary in 2021.

State Matters

Here is a sample of what’s going on around the country. Please be kind to yourself and use your discretion while reading this section. You can share news from your state with advocacy@pflag.org for possible inclusion in a future newsletter.

Idaho - State House passes joint memorial calling on U.S. Supreme Court to overturn Obergefell. The House voted 46-24 to pass Joint Memorial 1, which calls on the Supreme Court to overturn Obergefell v. Hodges, which legalized same-sex marriage nationwide, and to restore “the natural definition of marriage, a union of one man and one woman.”  

Kansas - House and Senate committees hear bills aimed at banning medically necessary care for trans and nonbinary youth. Last year, the legislature passed a very similar proposal, but it was vetoed by Gov. Laura Kelly. 

Montana - Bill introduced in the State Senate which would charge affirming parents of trans and nonbinary kids with child abuse. Sen. John Fuller introduced SB 164, which defines providing medically necessary care for trans and nonbinary youth under 16 as child abuse. This is the fifth time in three years Sen. Fuller has introduced this bill. 

Washington - Olympia declared state’s first sanctuary city for queer people. Assistant City Manager Stacey Ray presented the city council with a resolution declaring the city a sanctuary for the LGBTQ+ community during a meeting Tuesday, Jan. 28. The council passed the resolution unanimously.

Court Matters

Six trans service members sue to block President Trump’s trans military ban. The service members are represented by GLBTQ Legal Advocates and Defenders (GLAD) Law and the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR), which filed a federal lawsuit  challenging President Trump’s executive order barring transgender people from serving and enlisting in the military. The order reinstates a policy from Trump’s first term and rescinds a 2021 order by then-President Joe Biden that allowed trans people to enlist and serve openly. 

A transgender woman in federal custody sues over executive order impacting housing of incarcerated trans individuals. President Trump's executive order directing the U.S. government to recognize only two, unchangeable sexes requires trans women in federal custody like her to be housed in men's prisons. In a lawsuit filed in federal court in Boston, the plaintiff, who is being represented by GLAD Law, the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR), and Lowenstein Sandler LLP, argues that the executive order discriminates against her based on sex in violation of her due process rights.

Global Matters

International Criminal Court (ICC) recognizes LGBTQ+ people as victims of gender persecution. Karim Khan, the ICC’s chief prosecutor, announced a request for arrest warrants against Taliban officials accused of targeting women and LGBTQ+ people perceived as defying the Taliban’s strict gender norms in Afghanistan. This represents the first time LGBTQ+ people have been explicitly named as victims in a gender persecution case before the court. 

Argentina - Member of Congress files complaint against President Milei for anti-LGBTQ+ comments. Congressman Esteban Paulón, a long-time LGBTQ rights activist, filed a criminal complaint against the President, arguing Milei promoted negative stereotypes, and encouraged violence against the LGBTQ community in a speech the President made at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

United Kingdom - Design chosen for sculpture commemorating sacrifice of the LGBTQ+ community in the armed forces. A forged bronze sculpture called "Crumpled Letter" – designed by a Norfolk and Suffolk artists' collective called Abraxas Academy – will be installed in August at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire.

Media Matters

Paul Reubens comes out as gay posthumously in a documentary. Reubens, who was known for his Pee-wee Herman character, comes out in a new docuseries, “Pee-wee as Himself.” 

Catholic Cardinal makes historic apology for Church’s treatment of LGBTQ+ people. Cardinal Wilton Gregory, who leads the Catholic Archdiocese of Washington, DC, held a prayer service on January 22nd for members of the local LGBTQ Catholic organization Dignity Washington. Cardinal Gregory apologized for the Church’s treatment of the LGBTQ+ community during his sermon,  saying “The way that we have treated our LGBTQ brothers and sisters has brought them tears and to many of us disgrace…I apologize from the heart for the hurt that has resulted in the loss of so many of our family members who belong to God no less than I do.” 

PFLAG National
(202) 467-8180 | love@pflag.org

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