What Does Trump Know About Gender Anyway?

With Donald Trump’s numerous discriminatory executive actions being enacted almost instantaneously upon his inauguration, a resounding sense of anxiety and dread lingers throughout the bodies of the American people, especially many of those at Maryville College.

After signing his executive order entitled “Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” Trump went on a tirade, evoking a sense of trans-panic reminiscent of pie-loving Anita Bryant’s streak of anti-gay rhetoric in the ‘70s. 

While Bryant was a moderately successful singer-turned-homophobe, Donald Trump is the leader of the most influential and powerful nation on Earth, making his adamant stance against the idea of gender all the more frightening.

Dr. Karen Beale, professor of psychology at MC, believes that the executive order is unsurprising due to Trump’s previous language. 

“He has been firmly against science, higher-ed, diversity, equity and inclusion from the beginning of his campaign,” she said. “His agenda is perfectly clear in this executive order.”

Beale also questions the validity in the research behind the order. “He is not interested in the science behind the wide spectrum of sex and gender. I wish he would have consulted with an expert in the field before issuing this order, but, unfortunately, that did not happen,” she said. “There are many false and misleading statements in this order and the rescinding of life-saving reports from government websites is frightening.”

This lack of surprise regarding the executive order and its ignorance in research concerning gender has reverberated in the minds of many at MC. Dr. Jeff Kelly, assistant professor of neuroscience, criticized the way politicians often misrepresent biological reality while claiming to follow it.

“The reality is, there are plenty of politicians and other folks out there who continue to falsely represent an oversimplified view of human biology under the guise of ‘Biological Truth’,” Kelly said.

Dr. Rayanne Streeter, assistant professor of sociology at MC, echoed this sentiment. “It goes against what actual professionals and experts in the area say, what actual science and data proves, and it has major implications for men, women, trans, non-binary, and queer folks in the United States,” she said.

As actual science is intentionally ignored and there are increased attempts of combatting efforts of diversity, equity, and inclusion nationwide by the Trump administration, the discriminatory rhetoric involved and what that means for Maryville College moving forward is up in the air. 

While the college’s status as a private institution provides a layer of protection, many are still concerned on how this will have an impact going forward. Katie Parnell (‘27), President of MC’s Pride Club, worries for the ways in which MC’s community and education may be affected.

“We’ve already seen institutions changing their language around diversity, equity and inclusion and I worry that the political pressure, not just the regulations, will make it no longer acceptable to stand up for and educate people on gender in the coming years,” she said. “I am particularly worried about our ability to learn and teach about gender theory.”

“Trans people being allowed basic protections was framed as an attack on not only American citizens and the government but on truth,” Parnell said. “It’s concerning because it’s very easy to dehumanize people you see as an outsider and I worry this framing will lead to more extreme legislation.”

From an administrative perspective, there are numerous aspects of consequence to consider. Although MC is a private institution, it receives federal and state funding that could potentially be rescinded if executive orders or laws are not being followed. If funding were to be nullified based on this, numerous consequences could arise, including modifications or outright censorship of classes promoting Donald Trump’s favorite campaign phrase, “gender ideology.” 

An aversion to acknowledgement, discussion, and research on gender and sexuality is frightening for the state of the nation. While these decisions affect all individuals, it will be exponentially harmful to queer citizens, and, according to Kelly, is representative of a “growing political movement to ostracize and discriminate against the LGBT community.”

“[This is] evidenced by the CDC requiring revisions or retractions of published research using terms such as ‘transgender,’ banning of transgender women in sports which additionally reeks of misogyny, and the removal of ‘T’ from ‘LGBT’ on the travel and CDC websites,” Kelly said. “I don’t think any of these politicians truly grasp the extent of who they’re affecting with these political moves.”

The facetious nature in which these discussions of gender are brought up by politicians cannot be ignored either. While numerous studies and data detail the social construction of gender that directly opposes their political talking points, politicians intentionally use charged and coded-language as a way to distract citizens from the real issues at hand.

“Attacking trans, non-binary, queer and other folks who fall outside the gender binary is an easy scapegoat for other problems lawmakers and capitalists are unwilling to address,” said Streeter. “History shows us it’s often easier to go after these folks than to address the deeper and institutionalized systems of stratification which impact people. It’s a distraction tactic.”

The importance of proper education regarding so-called “gender ideology” is imperative to the future development of society. If every individual were to rethink what they’ve been taught about the idea of gender as a whole and consider how these ideas are often used by those in power as a way to distract, subjugate and oppress the everyday citizen, there would be much less areas of hatred in the world that lead to fatalistic outcomes for the queer community. It is through education and empathy that true progress is made.

As Parnell said, “While the new legislation and rise of anti-trans violence is absolutely devastating, it has put trans lives at the center of American consciousness and creates an opportunity to challenge biases against gender non-conforming people. While I am still worried about the rise of extremist anti-trans discrimination and violence, I have hope and faith that the everyday American will reject this line of thinking.”