I’ll always have with transgender people as a gay, in my opinion.

As a cis lesbian, I wo n’t stand for my community to be used to attack trans people, writes Emily Chudy, adding that this Transgender Awareness Week is more important than ever.

A gigantic and terrifying flood of transphobia has recently swept a defenseless community into the path of hatred like never before, having an impact on hundreds of anti-LGBT+ laws across the country.

As a trans gay, I have been sickened to see that much of this stigmatisation has been peddled under the pretense of protecting individuals like me, despite research showing that homosexuality frequently rises. Many of us have watched in horror as politicians like Rishi Sunak have made anti-trans comments or seen misogynistic love crimes rise.

In JK Rowling’s 2020 writing, where she asserted that some gay folks are transitioning in order to avoid racist abuse, I first noticed gays and transgender people being pitted against one another. I finally came across unfounded accusations that transgender women are pressuring lesbians into having sex with them, as well as anti-trans activists criticizing the gay dating apps HER for accepting trans and non-binary users, The Lesbian Project, and others.

Many of these anti-trans talking points adhere to the same tenet that homosexuals are at risk from trans women or “erase” their identities simply by being themselves. But the LGBTQ+ community could n’t be any further from the truth in this.

An August YouGov poll found that 84 percent of transgender gays have a favorable opinion of transgender people, compared to simply 39 % of all British people. Lesbians are also the most likely of the entire LGBTQ+ community to say they know a trans person (92 % ), according to the LGBT+ youth charity Just Like Us.

The truth is that, in addition to the fact that trans people are increasingly accepted by transgender lesbians, I would contend that anti-trans narratives are what are actually contributing to important issues affecting the “erased” of lesbias.

The battle for equal IVF exposure, lesbian mothers being removed from their children’s baby certificates, and the decline of LGBTQ+ venues in the UK are just a few of the real issues affecting Lesbians today that are being ignored by anti-trans campaigners who are falsely asserting that trans people pose the greatest threat to transgender lesbias. All of these issues also have an impact on trans women.

With trans women and gays working in communities for years and transgender individuals like Marsha P Johnson at Stonewall involved in the historical fight for LGBTQ+ right, it’s difficult to make an opinion seem noisy in magazines, online essays, and angry Online content. It is obvious that gay support for the transgender community is ineffective outside of the swirling size of derogatory remarks and private Twitter trolls.

When I attend LGBTQ+ team night in person, the atmosphere is made all the more interesting and welcoming by the diverse group of people from all walks of life, and knowing that everyone is encouraged has made those diverse areas feel like home. Those events would n’t be the kind of haven they are for people like me if anyone was left out of them.

I am aware that trans women have fought alongside lesbians for LGBTQ+ rights, spent happy nights on hot dance floors, and produced important and lovely art that enables young LGBT+ people to feel seen. Whether they are non-binary, intersex, lesbian, or gay, in my opinion, everyone in the LGBTQ+ community who has the courage to live as their true self has enriched it. Trans people are just like me in that they deserve to be a part of the area.

The LGBTQ+ community does n’t need to be pitted against one another at a time when homophobia and transphobia are shockingly high, and I genuinely think that as sexy people, we’re better off together than apart.

This Transgender Awareness Week, we need to make sure our allyship is shouting louder than always. Nasty voices can be really, unrelentingly audible, but their voices did not kill out the happy roar of love and acceptance.