As trans lawyer and activist Chase Strangio has said: “The NYT's horrible coverage of and fixation on trans people has been central to the progression of anti-trans bills and policies nationally… the stakes could not be higher than they are now.”

Trans people already face high rates of harassment, violence, homelessness, criminalization, suicide, and discrimination—particularly trans people of color. And now we’re in a whirlwind of escalating attacks on trans people, attempts to criminalize trans people for existing, and efforts to eliminate trans people from public life.

By featuring non-trans writers who scapegoat trans people and debate whether trans people even have a right to exist, the New York Times is normalizing hate and further targeting vulnerable communities. Because their platform is so powerful—not only widely read but also seen widely as legitimate—this is incredibly dangerous.

Texas has just entered at least one of the recent transphobic New York Times articles into evidence to support the Republican Governor’s push for the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services to investigate “any reported instances” of gender-affirming care to minors as child abuse—in an attempt to criminalize supportive parents and to separate families.

This goes against the guidance of all major medical associations, which have recognized that gender-affirming care is a life-saving medical necessity. What’s happening in Texas is part of a much larger, coordinated far-right attack against transgender and non-binary people. And they’re using the New York Times’ coverage as justification.

Please add your name now to tell the New York Times: Stop providing a platform for transphobic hate and anti-trans propaganda. Your articles have horrific, life-or-death consequences for marginalized people who are already targets. Instead, please feature trans writers and amplify trans voices.