More than 900 anti-LGBTQ incidents recorded over last year: GLAAD

The Hill

02-06-2025

The LGBTQ advocacy group GLAAD on Monday said it tracked nearly 1,000 incidents over the last year specifically targeting LGBTQ people in the U.S., a statistic the group said was worrying but that also represented a more than 20 percent decline over the previous year.
Between May 1, 2024, and May 1, 2025, GLAAD's ALERT Desk, an online tracker of anti-LGBTQ extremism in the U.S., recorded 932 anti-LGBTQ incidents in 49 states and Washington, D.C., the equivalent of 2.5 incidents each day. Violent attacks over the past year have resulted in 84 injuries and 10 deaths, the group said Monday.
'We know that there is this massive amount of hate and violence that LGBTQ people in the U.S. are experiencing on a daily basis, and we know that this is kind of different, sort of, depending on the different activities that people are engaging in or the different identities that people hold within the community,' said Sarah Moore, an anti-LGBTQ extremism analyst at GLAAD who heads the ALERT Desk initiative.
More than half of all incidents last year targeted transgender and gender-nonconforming people, for instance, up 14 percent from the previous year.
'This goes along with the really intense conversations that we're having right now around trans rights,' said Moore.
President Trump since returning to office in January has issued a flurry of executive orders targeting transgender Americans, including one proclaiming the U.S. recognizes only two sexes, male and female. Others aim to bar trans people from serving openly in the military, end federal support for gender-affirming care for minors and ban transgender athletes from competing in girls' and women's sports.
More than 580 bills targeting LGBTQ rights were introduced this year in state legislatures, according to the American Civil Liberties Union, and a disproportionate amount would impact transgender people.
According to Monday's report, at least 181 anti-LGBTQ incidents recorded over the last year targeted state and local governments, including state elected officials and city council members, an increase of 57 percent over last year. Incidents targeting students, teachers and libraries rose 10 percent.
Sarah Kate Ellis, GLAAD's president and CEO, said the data reflects speech and policy shifts targeting LGBTQ people in the U.S.
'This year, rollbacks in LGBTQ visibility and challenges to our rights are coupled with a sharp rise in anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and disinformation across social media and political campaigns. The result is a divisive cultural climate that comes at a cost,' she said in a statement.
'Awareness, collective action, and urgency can turn the tide,' Ellis said.
Monday's report, released on the second day of Pride, found that attacks targeting drag performers sank over the last year, dropping 55 percent from the previous year in the first year-over-year decline since GLAAD launched the ALERT Desk in 2022.
The group attributed the decrease to 'the resilience and tenacity of the drag community' and better safety resources for drag performers. Qommittee, a national network of drag artists, released its first 'Drag Defense Handbook' last week to help performers fight against threats of violence and harassment and state laws against drag.
Incidents targeting Pride flags and symbols also declined 25 percent from data collected between 2023 and 2024, according to the ALERT Desk.