There is no state of emergency for LGBT people
Jack Elbaum
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On Tuesday, Human Rights Campaign (HRC) declared a “national state of emergency for LGBTQ+ people.” The group explains: “We have officially declared a state of emergency for LGBTQ+ people in the United States for the first time following an unprecedented and dangerous spike in anti-LGBTQ+ legislative assaults sweeping state houses this year … Our community is in danger, but we won’t stop fighting back — not now, not ever.”
This declaration comes on the heels of a travel advisory that HRC, the NAACP, and others issued for Florida last month despite statistics showing Florida is a better and safer place to be black or non-heterosexual than the liberal hubs of New York and California. Unsurprisingly, much as with their travel advisory, this “state of emergency” declaration is also nothing more than politically-motivated hyperbole.
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We can start with a basic, timely observation: We are in the midst of “pride month,” which is among the largest celebrations of the year. As a part of this celebration, retail chains make gender-different pride a priority in their stores, major corporations make statements, sports teams host pride nights where players wear rainbow jerseys, there are parades with millions in attendance, and federal agencies raise the pride flag in official ceremonies.
Also, there is now measurably more social acceptance of alternative gender norms and practices than ever before: New data show that support for governmental recognition of gay marriage is at an all-time high of 71% and that it has been on a consistent rise for decades. There are now gay congressmen, senators, NFL players, and even increasingly prominent gay conservative commentators. In many ways, the gay rights movement achieved its primary goal: Being gay now is widely considered normal.
It is no exaggeration to say that the United States is among the best places, and 2023 is the best time, to be LGBT in all of human history. This fact is indicated by every available statistic. And I agree that this development is a good thing — particularly when considering what conditions were like in the past. Today, most people are perfectly happy to “live and let live.” I certainly am. With this as context, it becomes clear why this HRC stunt is so ridiculous.
At the same time, to address their concerns, there will inevitably be pushback when 1) “pride” becomes an increasingly all-encompassing force such that the scope of its celebration is second only to that of Independence Day, 2) gender ideology becomes infused into K-12 curricula, and 3) some clinics have decided that “affirming” childrens’ new gender identities with hormones and puberty blockers is the only respectable thing to do.
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So there is pushback to certain excesses, but this does not put people in danger or suggest that the majority of people who are part of it wish for LGBT people to be ostracized. Rather, it only means that the excesses of radical LGBT ideology have become too prevalent. Pointing that out, and legislating on it, does not constitute a “national emergency” — even if one disagrees with those critics, especially considering that many LGBT people themselves strongly oppose the demands of the more extremist activists.
The HRC organization doubtless derives significant benefits from making this declaration. It gets a few more big headlines and, consequently, a few more big donations. Not bad for just releasing a statement. At the same time, it does not come without a cost. By making its declaration, HRC not only misleads about the current condition of America — leading some to believe they are in danger when in reality they are not — but also needlessly raises the national temperature at a time when it needs to be lowered.
Jack Elbaum is a summer 2023 Washington Examiner fellow.