Drew’s Sexuality and Gender Alliance collaborated with campus asexual community group, The Ace Space, to hold a “Post-Election Talk & Support Group” discussion on Monday, Oct. 11, in the Rose Library’s Kean Room. Snacks were provided, and event organizers had scattered many sheets of paper on the table that contained various queer and trans focused mental health hotlines, as well as hotlines for other diverse communities. Participants started the event around 7:30 p.m.
As the discussion began, participants highlighted a general feeling of extreme exhaustion. Community members were tense, and many questioned whether it might stay feasible for people who may identify as LGBTQ+ to stay in the U.S. at all. They expressed extreme fear, saying that they were not sure whether civil liberties might be taken from them at a moment’s notice on the whim of political leadership.
As the transition of power between Democratic and Republican parties scheduled to take place in January becomes increasingly more imminent and draws ever closer, it still remains to be seen what policies the new Trump administration will launch with its inevitable renewed attack on LGBTQ+ and trans rights in the United States. Many states that are already conservative, especially in the South and the Midwest, have already been launching severe attacks against vulnerable minorities in their state at a government level.
The discussion was eventually steered towards Project 2025,a recent conservative movement that has put many in the LGBTQ+ community on edge, and what it may mean for vulnerable minorities across the United States.
The danger that Project 2025 poses to the community as a whole was emphasized during the event. Project 2025 is a conservative think tank movement that aligns with much of Trump’s agenda for his second term. It aims to fundamentally curb minority rights within the U.S. — such as restricting access to abortion and gender affirming care — as well as increased militarization of the U.S.’ Southern border. It also promises to replace the Department of Health and Homeland Security with a “Department of Life” and eliminate the Department of Education completely, leaving education largely up to the states’ discretion as to curriculums and what is incorporated into an education.
The new Trump administration could have massive, disastrous and potentially fatal consequences for many queer and trans youth. One participant, Alice Holway (‘25), also added that the administration has repeatedly pushed for trans visibility and trans people to be classified as “pornographic material” and then to make such material illegal — Holway emphasized that this could put trans people in danger of being “thrown in jail simply for existing.”
The discussion also turned to the topic of the recent contention in the U.S. over what are being termed “book bans,” or the effective censorship of books and material that the local government deems inappropriate. This measure has all too often lately been used to target LGBTQ+ representation and minority writing, with one member of the discussion expressing that those advocating for book bans want to keep the population uneducated, and “take away…[their] knowledge.”
Eme Brennan (‘25) and Victoria Vermilye (‘25), two of the main organizers of the event, said that they held it because they think it’s important not to isolate, or to be afraid of each other when when the community already has so much in the rest of the world to be afraid of. They highlighted the importance of “power in numbers” and that it’s important to retain hope no matter how dire the situation may seem. If we give up, they feel, we allow extremism to win.
Brennan (‘25) and Vermilye (‘25) also highlighted some of the positive changes made in Congress this election cycle, emphasizing the election of multiple new queer and trans senators and representatives. Among the many talked about was Sarah McBride (D-Delaware), a 34-year-old trans woman who was recently elected to represent Delaware in the House of Representatives. She is the first trans woman to be elected to the House, and interned for Barack Obama as well as served as a State Senator for the First State Senate District.
If you are struggling with mental health this month, you are not alone. Drew’s Counseling Department offers free sessions which can be scheduled by contacting counseling@drew.edu. If you are having thoughts of self-harm or suicidal ideation, please contact the National Suicide & Crisis Hotline at 988. You can also contact Trans Lifeline at (877) 565-8860, Blackline at (800) 604-5841 or the LGBT National Help Center at (888) 843-4564, among others.
Sabr Keres-Siddiqui is a sophomore majoring in sociology.
