How the Far-Right Comes for Trans People
Violent far-right U.S. groups are ‘hugely and deeply’ anti-transgender
On June 10, NBC reporter Ben Collins spoke on “All In with Chris Hayes.” At one point (33:26–34:17 Apple; 33:52–34:41 Spotify) , he said that violent groups like the Proud Boys have “moved on” from the interests they had while Trump was in office. No longer, Collins said, are these groups
“singularly focused on defending President Trump…that is not the point of these groups anymore. They are back to the idea of being a menacing street gang, and they want to get in the way of people that have become pariahs to them. So they are hugely and deeply into this anti-trans panic that’s going on right now. If you go to their pages, they’re not talking about January 6. They’re talking about LGBTQ groups and Pride Month and places to go for that. They’re looking for a leader who’s more into that sort of thing. And they’re open. They don’t necessarily need it to be Donald Trump to give them directions anymore like he did during that debate a few years ago. They are looking for anyone who is willing to ratchet up the rhetoric and maybe lead it to violence.” [emphasis mine]
This is an important connection to make. Few people talk about this, and I want to highlight it.
