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The new President of the United States is now unveiling his plan to dismantle progress and implement a violent and discriminatory society, all of which have been designed to reverse human rights wins. Between 20 and 29 January, 2025, Donald Trump announced a series of presidential actions, aimed at scaling up attacks toward every individual's right to decide over their own body, identity, and life. The plan of the Trump administration was detailed in the "Project 2025": A society where women lose their rights and freedoms and are reduced to reproductive and domestic labour; A society where the existence of trans and intersex individuals is denied, and their rights are trampled upon; A society where lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals are forbidden from the choice to have a family - or not - and live freely in their emotional, sexual and relational lives. We have learnt from years of denouncing and refusing the conditions of the Global Gag Rule, that executive orders expand over political cycles, and we can’t rely on a change in government to wind back the clock. The introduction of the Foreign Aid Executive Order, the Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism And Restoring Biological Truth To The Federal Government, and the Reevaluating And Realigning United States Foreign Aid reveal a new level of complexity designed to chill the funding landscape and promote violence against those most discriminated and marginalized. This vision, driven by far-right ideologies, will accelerate gender-based, sexual, and LGBTQI+phobic violence, result in more deaths and restrict long taken for granted human rights. This deadly project is not unique to the American far-right. We see it spreading across the world. We have seen both right-wing and left-wing governments gradually incorporating far-right narratives by denying the rights of trans individuals, migrants, and women. A culture of fear and silence has translated into collusion and complicity. We will stand up and speak out for sexual and reproductive health, rights and justice for ALL.  Trans people, women, refugees, and migrants are not the threat. Two consecutive administrations who militarised aid and development followed by the Trump Administrations attacks on identity make the US political establishment the real threat to global peace and progress.  Let’s cut through the rhetoric and name the Trump Administration's actions for what they are: Attacking the rights of trans and intersex individuals is attacking women’s rights. Deporting migrants leads to misery and death for at risk or targeted populations. Forcibly transferring incarcerated trans women to men’s prisons amounts to risking their lives Cutting funding to the World Health Organization, UNFPA and others makes us vulnerable to pandemics, and cuts off healthcare to everyone, including Americans. Blocking funding for sexual and reproductive health organizations increases the amount of abortions, but makes them less safe, resulting in pregnant people dying. Denying trans adolescents access to healthcare leaves children to suffer, more than 1.8 million LGBTQ+ young people (ages 13-24) seriously consider suicide each year in the U.S. — and at least one attempts suicide every 45 seconds. Increasing militarization and occupation results in more attacks against health care workers and the destruction of service sites makes progress impossible. Withdrawing from the Paris Agreement contributes to an increase in natural disasters and humanitarian crises, where most unsafe abortions happen.  The far-right’s program leads to the death of women, LGBTQI+ individuals, migrants, the poor, and other oppressed groups. To combat this destructive societal vision, our organizations call for the unity of progressive movements: We urge governments to stop enabling anti-rights narratives: let women, trans, intersex and non-binary individuals, and migrants live with dignity. Respect our human rights. Defend our human rights. Condemn governments that attack us. We welcome political and climate refugees. We call on feminist organizations, defenders of sexual rights, LGBTQI+ advocates, environmentalists, and ALL human rights defenders: build bridges between our struggles. Keep showing up as part of the wider liberation struggle. To organizations with privileged access to places of power like us: use this privilege to amplify the struggles of those absent from the negotiation table. Elevate the voice of the people who are directly targeted. To keep fighting for the end of colonisation and occupation. We speak out against the militarization of our health service scopes, and the killing of health care workers and patients.  Finally, to individuals and activists who follow us, who defend our causes, who demonstrate, share our messages on social media, and support us financially: thank you. You are not alone. Join us. Let’s come together and fight back and win.

Since his inauguration, Donald Trump has conducted a vicious and calculated assault on trans and nonbinary people. Whilst not yet concluded, his attacks include a suite of executive actions designed to humiliate, demonise and erase trans and non-binary people from public life, and include the targeting of children and young people. Some of the actions include the denial of gender-affirming care for minors and the denial of comprehensive sex and relationships education for students. This will increase the rate of violence against, and suicide in young people, and is nothing short of an act of state violence. “Trans children and young people deserve safety, access to the same standard of care afforded to their peers, and adults around them who have their best interest at heart listening to their needs," said Micah Grzywnowicz, Regional Director, IPPF European Network. "No young person, regardless of who they are, should be used as a pawn in a political game. The consequences of this Executive Order will be devastating and long-lasting. For many, access to gender affirming care is a lifeline - we will soon see increasing risks of mental health struggles, including anxiety, depression, and in the worst-case scenario, suicidal tendencies. This must be taken off the books - immediately,” The attacks against children and young people are linked to a full-scale ideological war against all LGBTQI people denying them access to health care and meaningful employment. The anti-gender executive action positions women as needing protection - not from the Trump Administration - but from trans people; and the dog whistling against sexually and gender diverse military personnel is not only bizarre, but signals a new era of toxic masculinity in an increasingly militarised world. Shifting the narrative from marginalization to outright criminalization is dangerous. It is extremist. It is inhumane. The Trump administration’s rollback of HIV/AIDS funding and potential cuts to PEPFAR will have devastating consequences — especially for transgender people, some of whom are engaged in sex work due to systemic discrimination. These cuts will directly impact access to life-saving medication, prevention programs, and healthcare. LGBTQI+ people rely on access to sexual and reproductive healthcare, the reinstatement of the global gag rule and the new foreign aid executive action further denies health care to LGBTQI+ people. By stripping away these vital services, Trump is jeopardising years of global health progress. And it is not just happening in the United States. Across the world, IPPF and its Member Associations are mobilized to expose these strategies used by political parties and governments spreading trans and homophobic ideologies. Many far-right governments use the same playbook—using transphobia as a political weapon to divide the women’s movement, and putting at risk years of child protection efforts designed to safeguard children from harm: in the house, by the church and from the state. As part of the women’s movement we resist the patriarchy, we stand with lesbian, gay, queer, trans and non-binary people who are part of our movement.  We are family. We will fight for the rights of our children and young people in all their beautiful diversity. We stand with trans and non-binary people everywhere.   For more information on gender-affirming care, read our IMAP Statement here: IMAP Statement on Hormone Therapy for Transgender and Gender Diverse Persons | IPPF  You can also read our blog on Self-care tips for when you are receiving gender-affirming healthcare here: Self-care tips for when you are receiving gender-affirming healthcare | IPPF