Contact: Natalie Shure, natalie.shure@treatmentactiongroup.org
New York City, January 22, 2025 — The new U.S. presidential administration has issued several executive orders[1], which use pseudo-scientific claims to deny the existence of transgender and non-binary people.
“We haven’t seen such trans- and homophobic policies emanating from the Executive Branch since the grim early years of the HIV epidemic,” said TAG Executive Director Mark Harrington. “AIDS activists are all-too-familiar with the multifaceted bigotry of the 1980s, which delayed and weakened the nation’s response to the outbreak of HIV, and led to avoidable illness and death for untold numbers of LGBTQ people both in the U.S. and globally.”
Homophobia[2] and transphobia[3] continue to be associated with elevated risk of HIV acquisition.
The new administration’s cruel efforts are an affront to the dignity of transgender and non-binary people, and fly in the face of broad scientific and medical consensus. The most recent scientific data indicate that over 1.6 million people[4] in the U.S. identify as transgender. Transphobic federal policies will increase stigma, discrimination, and barriers to care, exacerbating the health disparities that already exist for vulnerable and marginalized populations.
Contrary to the false claims about “defending women,” the order threatens cisgender women who don’t conform to traditional stereotypes about femininity. It undermines scientific work toward understanding biological sex differences such as the increased risk of autoimmunity compared to men[5] – sexism has played a role in this being understudied. The participation of transgender people in research can shed vital insight on the potential contributions of hormonal and chromosomal factors to health.[6] Sex and gender contributions to HIV risk, acquisition, and outcomes are important to study.[7]
Trans people and cisgender women are under-represented in crucial research, such as HIV prevention[8] and HIV cure-related[9] clinical trials.
Encouraging participation in research requires fostering trust based on scientific evidence, not the promotion of bigotry and denial of people’s existence, their dignity, or their rights to equal consideration and health.”
The executive order – with its scientifically unfounded proclamation that sex and gender should be considered binary by the federal government – draws from equally ignorant transphobic propaganda frequently found within right-wing messaging in the U.S. and worldwide, particularly in recent campaign ads. This messaging attempts to circumvent the scientifically well-established complexity of human development by trying to define sex based on the size of gametes. But gametes are generated by mature adults and the executive order clumsily tries to incorporate anti-abortion “fetal personhood” talking points by suggesting sex is identifiable at the time of conception (it is not). Moreover the claim confutes sex and gender identity.
“Because the intent is to make the ‘truth’ whatever the administration says it is, such scientific illiteracy is unsurprising,” said TAG Government Relations & Policy Associate Kendall Martinez-Wright, “This anti-science, evidence-free tactic should horrify all rational people of good conscience.”
Treatment Action Group stands with transgender and non-binary people everywhere – the rise of bigotry and denialism must be fought on all fronts.
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About TAG: Treatment Action Group (TAG) is an independent, activist and community-based research and policy think tank fighting for better treatment, prevention, a vaccine, and a cure for HIV, tuberculosis, and hepatitis C virus. TAG works to ensure that all people with HIV, TB, and HCV receive lifesaving treatment, care, and information. We are science-based treatment activists working to expand and accelerate vital research and effective community engagement with research and policy institutions.
[1] Wolf B, Human Rights Campaign. Background On Trump Day One Executive Orders Impacting The LGBTQ+ Community. 2025 Jan 22.
[2] Jeffries WL, Flores SA, Rooks-Peck CR, Gelaude DJ, Belcher L, Ricks PM et al. Experienced Homophobia and HIV Infection Risk Among U.S. Gay, Bisexual, and Other Men Who Have Sex with Men: A Meta-Analysis. LGBT Health. 2021 Jan. doi: 10.1089/lgbt.2020.0274
[3] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Fast Facts: HIV and Transgender People. CDC HIV. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/data-research/facts-stats/transgender-people.html
[4] Herman JL, Flores AR, O’Neill KK, Williams Institute. How Many Adults and Youth Identify as Transgender in the United States? 2022 Jun.
[5] Wiepjes C, Den Heijer M. SAT416 The Incidence Of Autoimmune Disease In Transgender People After Initiation Of Gender-Affirming Hormone Therapy. J Endocr Soc. 2023 Oct 5. doi: 10.1210/jendso/bvad114.2087
[6] Lakshmikanth T, Consiglio C, Sardh F, et al. Immune system adaptation during gender-affirming testosterone treatment. Nature. 2024 Sep;633(8028):155-164. doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07789-z
[7] Mihealsick E, Word A, Scully EP. The impact of sex on HIV immunopathogenesis and therapeutic interventions. J Clin Invest. 2024 Sep 17;134(18):e180075. doi: 10.1172/JCI180075.
[8] Cirrincione L, Grieve VLB, Holloway J, Marzinke MA. Inclusion of transgender and gender diverse people in Phase 3 trials: Examples from HIV pharmacologic prevention studies. Clin Pharmacol Ther. 2022 Dec. doi: 10.1002/cpt.2801.
[9] Dubé K, Kanazawa J, Campbell C, Boone CA, Maragh-Bass AC, Campbell DM et al. Considerations for Increasing Racial, Ethnic, Gender, and Sexual Diversity in HIV Cure-Related Research with Analytical Treatment Interruptions: A Qualitative Inquiry. AIDS Res Hum Retroviruses. 2022 Jan. doi: : 10.1089/aid.2021.0023