Anti-Transgenderism in the US Sociopolitical Realm
Location
PANEL: Sociology Honors Pt. I
King 341
Moderator: Christie Parris
Document Type
Presentation - Open Access
Start Date
5-1-2026 11:00 AM
End Date
5-1-2026 12:00 PM
Abstract
I investigate the contemporary anti-trans countermovement within the US and how it frames itself in opposition to trans* existence. Past research suggests that this countermovement arose partially in legacy of the modern anti-gay countermovement and partially in response to a perceived threat of a racialized gendered hierarchy. However, this past research is limited by not considering the roles the concepts of ideology and terrorism play in anti-trans debates, specifically with the phrases of ‘transgenderism’ and ‘radical gender/trans ideology.’ I assess three main sources of data: the content of about 2300 state-based anti-trans legislation from 2019 to 2025; anti-transgenderism sociopolitical commentary from “Project 2025” and Irreversible Damage; and a leaked set of emails from an anti-trans coalition. From these sources, I use statistical analysis and content analysis to understand how legislators frame and attack trans* existence. Findings suggest that while anti-trans discourses are laden with sociopolitical anxieties, these anxieties are increasingly being redirected towards solving the problem of transness, reframing trans* existence as a political and terroristic ideology oppositional to US normative culture. This has implications for future research as this countermovement increasingly reframes the US national identity to adopt anti-transgenderism and cisnationalism.
Keywords:
Transgender, Ideology, Reactionary countermovements, U.S. politics
Recommended Citation
King, Jasper, "Anti-Transgenderism in the US Sociopolitical Realm" (2026). Research Symposium. 27.
https://digitalcommons.oberlin.edu/researchsymp/2026/presentations/27
Major
Sociology; Politics
Award
Jerome Davis Research Fund
Project Mentor(s)
Alicia Smith-Tran, Sociology
2026
Anti-Transgenderism in the US Sociopolitical Realm
PANEL: Sociology Honors Pt. I
King 341
Moderator: Christie Parris
I investigate the contemporary anti-trans countermovement within the US and how it frames itself in opposition to trans* existence. Past research suggests that this countermovement arose partially in legacy of the modern anti-gay countermovement and partially in response to a perceived threat of a racialized gendered hierarchy. However, this past research is limited by not considering the roles the concepts of ideology and terrorism play in anti-trans debates, specifically with the phrases of ‘transgenderism’ and ‘radical gender/trans ideology.’ I assess three main sources of data: the content of about 2300 state-based anti-trans legislation from 2019 to 2025; anti-transgenderism sociopolitical commentary from “Project 2025” and Irreversible Damage; and a leaked set of emails from an anti-trans coalition. From these sources, I use statistical analysis and content analysis to understand how legislators frame and attack trans* existence. Findings suggest that while anti-trans discourses are laden with sociopolitical anxieties, these anxieties are increasingly being redirected towards solving the problem of transness, reframing trans* existence as a political and terroristic ideology oppositional to US normative culture. This has implications for future research as this countermovement increasingly reframes the US national identity to adopt anti-transgenderism and cisnationalism.
