Note: The Lawrence Times runs opinion columns and letters to the Times written by community members with varying perspectives on local issues. These pieces do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Times staff.
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Re: “Letter to the Times: America has chosen freedom,” published Nov. 24:
On Nov. 24, the Lawrence Times published a letter to the Times from Rich Lorenzo. Lorenzo, who recently lost his election for the Douglas County Commission, stated that:
- Trump’s victory was a “win for freedom and for working-class people”,
- This result was because of people voting for “more freedom and less government intervention”,
- We should do more to reach across the aisle and have “real conversations”, and
- Voting this way does not indicate a desire to “restrict or silence” others.
Lorenzo correctly points out that Trump’s campaign and the MAGA movement as a whole relied heavily on a populist approach. Populism, which is a political stance that emphasizes the needs of the common people over the elite, is a natural consequence of conflict between the working and ruling class. It is not tied to any one political party. Because of this, it’s incredibly easy to exploit populism to garner support without meaningfully helping the working class. For example, fascism frequently takes a populist approach and turns vulnerable populations into a scapegoat, as the nazis did with antisemitic rhetoric about the “Jewish elite.”
We are obligated, then, to point out that although Lorenzo may be completely sincere in his beliefs about helping the working class, he does not extend those convictions to trans people.
Lorenzo is the president of Called to Greatness, a Christian ministry that has a presence in Morningstar Church here in Lawrence. Last year, Called to Greatness brought Chloe Cole to the University of Kansas. Cole is a detransitioner who claimed she was coerced into transitioning between the ages of 13 and 16. According to her own testimony, she is paid more than $100,000 a year by Do No Harm, a right-wing organization that was originally founded in 2022 to combat anti-racist policies in health care settings. The year it was founded, Do No Harm had a revenue of $2.94 million and expenditures of $2.31 million. That means Do No Harm spent $2.31 million not to help the working class access health care they desperately need — they spent $2.31 million to actively combat access to health care for people of color and trans people. Part of that $2.31 million was spent on lobbyists in Kansas and flying in Cole to testify in favor of anti-trans legislation, even when Kansan opposition for this legislation greatly exceeds that in favor.
Just like we see with Trump and MAGA, we are once again confronted with the truth behind their so-called populism: ultimately, this is a cover to promote far-right policies that are funded by millionaires.
Lorenzo’s framing of himself as a reasonable and level-headed citizen who is interested in unity and positive change explicitly ignores the impact of his ministry’s actions on trans people. For instance, we know that, when compared to cis people, trans people are up to 2.6 times more likely to be impoverished, are 2 times more likely to be unemployed, make up to 40% less in wages, and suffer from far more physical and mental health conditions due to discrimination by health care workers. We also know that trans youth are far more likely to attempt suicide due to anti-trans legislation, discrimination and lack of support.
What is revealed implicitly through Lorenzo’s letter is this: he does not believe that the needs of working class trans people count as working class needs at all.
His emphasis on the importance of having conversations is one that we also agree with. Unfortunately, many of these so-called conversations are done in bad faith. More frequently, it is not conversations that we encounter but rather legislative attempts to restrict our freedom to exist publicly without discrimination and have autonomy over our own bodies. This is done, of course, without any input from us, despite the fact that we are directly impacted.
No more false populism. We must be diligent in calling out disingenuous actors who seek to further divisions under the guise of helping the working class. The working class and impoverished are disproportionately racialized, disabled, female, queer and trans. Any attempt to disregard, erase or attack any of those aspects only serves to reify the power of the ruling class.
And to Lorenzo, should he be reading this: if you are true to your word and are curious to have a conversation about trans Kansans, our needs, and our perspectives, you can email us at translawrencecoalition@gmail.com.
Sincerely,
— Isaac Johnson, he/they/ze, Lawrence
Trans Lawrence Coalition
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Shawn Alexander: The new year, with apologies to and inspiration from Langston Hughes (Column)
”Let us see and hear in the new year the faint voices captured in the Kaw and all ancient rivers ‘older than the flow of human blood in human veins’ that are carrying the calls and dreams of a more hopeful, peaceful, tolerant, and just world,” Shawn Alexander writes in this column.
