Videos surfacing of Syrian security forces assaulting trans people. Reports say trans women were lured into meetings, then ambushed and detained.
Under Assad, LGBTQ+ Syrians faced imprisonment, torture, and death. Now, under the rule of Islamist Ahmed al-Sharaa, leader of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the persecution is only getting worse.
So many in the West who claim to champion LGBTQ+ rights stay silent when trans people are brutalized in Muslim countries. Why? Because speaking up would highlight their hypocrisy and double standards.
This is the racism of low expectations—assuming that some people are incapable of upholding basic human rights, so their abuses are excused or ignored.
It is disingenuous to claim to fight for human rights only when it fits a convenient narrative.
The Islamists they romanticize as "freedom fighters" are the same ones imposing this brutal, draconian violence on trans people.
Believing in trans rights means fighting for ALL trans people, everywhere. Anything less is cowardice.