Since 2021, US states have passed a wave of laws targeting transgender people. Arkansas became the first state to ban gender-affirming care for minors that year, and at least 27 states had passed similar bans by 2025. In June 2025, the Supreme Court upheld Tennessee's ban in United States v. Skrmetti by a 6 to 3 vote. Other laws restrict bathroom use, school sports and changes to identity documents.
Transphobia has measurable effects. The Trevor Project's 2020 national survey found that transgender and nonbinary youth whose pronouns were respected by everyone they lived with attempted suicide at half the rate of those whose pronouns were not respected.
Transphobia also intersects with racism. Black transgender women face high rates of violence, poverty and police contact. Black and Latina trans women such as Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera were among the early leaders of the modern LGBTQ movement.