The outcome of the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election caused a lot of mixed emotions. For the LGBTQ+ community in particular, there is a lot to say. We are less than two months into Donald Trump’s second presidential term, and he has already done so much to repress the rights of LGBTQ+ citizens.
From banning transgenders from the military to removing all mentions of LGBTQ+ people from government websites, Trump has made it well known how he plans to move forward, — only being more emboldened by every action.
Our LGBTQ+ community is very concerned about the protections of their rights and even their lives. They want answers to the question: What do we do now?
Jaysen Lindamood has been asking this very important question. Lindamood is a queer student at EvCC and president of the Gender and Sexuality Alliance (GSA) club. Since the election outcome, Lindamood has been dealing with a lot of stress and fear around their safety and identity.

“There are still fears of being discriminated against, having my rights taken away, being targeted by people if I am just out and about living and being my own person, just generally the fear of expressing who I am and acting how I want to,” Lindamood said. In fear of someone deciding that I am the perfect target to go after, just because I am not fitting the views of other people.”
There are many others with similar concerns. Sam Case, a staff member at EvCC, has much to say. Case works in EvCC’s art department, and has been the staff advisor for the GSA for three years.
As a gay adult, Case has been very disappointed with the state of things. He is especially concerned with the massive push to get rid of resources that protect queer kids on campus and outside as well. “It’s a difficult time for queer people.” Case said.
Case became the advisor of GSA to help foster the community on campus, and despite the problems LGBTQ+ people are facing, Case is always willing to offer support and advice to anyone who needs it.
“I think as a community it’s really important that we rely on each other, as a way to find joy and hope through all of the difficulty.”
Being a part of the LGBTQ+ community means that, like all minority groups, we challenge the “norms” of our society. It is reasons such as this that make people in power fear the community so much.
Case strongly encouraged that we stand up for our rights together and make sure that we communicate our problems through these uncertain times. “Beyond that, call your representatives, protest, if you notice problems on campus, talk to your community about them so that you’re not dealing with them alone,” Case said.
Case isn’t the only one who believes in this. Szabella Pasztor is a political activist fighting for the queer community and other minority groups for several years.
Being a queer person herself, Pasztor has been very vocal about the problems people are facing. She encourages people to make their voices heard, get engaged with elected officials, and protest for our rights.
“We are in a time where many communities aren’t being heard by their officials,” Pasztor said. “Promises are not being kept — and we need to seek representation so we can better ourselves as Americans.”