Israeli LGBTQ orgs slam Trump’s anti-trans measures, warn they could come to Israel

Responses come after US president, on 1st day in office, signed executive order recognizing only man and woman as genders and putting in place measures against trans community

A person waves an Israeli flag with the transgender pride flag superimposed on it as thousands take part in the annual LGBTQ Pride Parade in Jerusalem, on May 30, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
A person waves an Israeli flag with the transgender pride flag superimposed on it as thousands take part in the annual LGBTQ Pride Parade in Jerusalem, on May 30, 2024. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Israeli LGBTQ organizations heavily criticized US President Donald Trump on Tuesday after he signed an executive order the previous day declaring that the US would now only recognize “man” and “woman” as genders.

According to the order, the US would officially classify Americans’ genders based on the reproductive organs they were born with, meaning the country would no longer recognize transgender or non-binary as legitimate genders.

The order also states that federal prisons and shelters would be segregated by sex according to the order’s stipulations and that taxpayers’ money could not be used to fund services for trans people.

Railing against the order, Israeli LGBTQ+ organizations warned that Trump’s move could lead to similar moves against the Israeli transgender community. Even though Israel does not recognize genders other than man or woman, it currently does allow trans people to change the genders listed in their ID cards after they transition.

Trans people can also have their gender-affirming surgeries subsidized as part of their medical insurance packages and cannot legally be discriminated against in the workplace. Israel allows youth under the age of 18 to begin hormone treatments with parental consent and are given mental and emotional support for the process.

Zohar Katan, the chairperson of the Ma’avarim organization for the Israeli trans community, was quoted by the Walla news site as saying Trump’s order was only the first step targeting US trans people and warned that it could also lead to attacks against gay people and infringe on women’s rights.

US President Donald Trump signs an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House, January 20, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

“Today, trans people are considering leaving the US or moving to different states — it’s organized persecution,” she said, contending that the same measures could also come to Israel.

“We may be able to build our resilience in different ways, mainly with dialogue and cooperation, but we need to be ready for it. We are raising the flag already now and it needs to be for every community or organization that cares about having a democratic society. It may begin with the trans community, but it can easily escalate to the whole LGBTQ community and other communities. We will fight for Israel to remain democratic with human rights and for people to have the rights over their own bodies,” she added.

Nina Halevy, who manages a support program for trans people in the Gila Project, echoed the warning that similar measures could come to Israel and compared Trump to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler in a statement cited by the Walla news outlet, saying that both men identified a “weakened minority and used it as a scapegoat.”

“We are very scared and are working mainly against organized transphobia and against organizations that are trying to set a conservative and oppressive agenda,” she said.

She warned that the order would lead to further legislation against the trans community, especially its youth, due to misinformation surrounding it.

“No one is overdosing them with hormones or mutilating them,” she said.

Marchers in last year’s Mitzpe Ramon LGBT pride march, July 2, 2021. (Flash90)

The Israeli LGBTQ+ Youth Movement, known as IGY, wrote in a post on X on Tuesday that Trump’s order did nothing but serve “extremist anti-LGBTQ+ people.”

“Protecting the lives of the youth and our community is not negotiable and we cannot allow this policy to seep into Israel,” the movement said.

The Aguda – The Association for LGBTQ+ Equality in Israel warned that US transgender people would soon begin to see the Trump administration damage their rights in the military, healthcare, employment and education, among other fields.

“Extremist forces have already announced that they intend to import this dangerous policy to Israel. We will continue to stand as a wall in the face of anyone who tries to harm the community and especially people on the trans spectrum,” the Aguda said.

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