"Last week, devastating news tore through the transgender community: Fenway Health - once one of the most trusted LGBTQ+ clinics in America - announced it would end gender-affirming care for anyone under 19, bowing to pressure from the Trump administration. The rationale was both cynical and cowardly. Fenway claimed it feared that Trump could revoke federal funding on a whim and that by staying in his administration's good graces, the clinic could protect its resources."
"We've seen this kind of preemptive obedience play out across the country. Some hospitals have quietly dismantled their gender-affirming care programs rather than risk litigation - even though the few that have fought back have largely won in court. Universities have instituted discriminatory bathroom and housing bans with only a nudge from Washington, surrendering before a single lawsuit was filed."
Fenway Health stopped providing gender-affirming care to anyone under 19, citing fears that the federal government could revoke funding. That decision reflects preemptive obedience by institutions seeking to avoid political or financial retaliation rather than contest unlawful threats. Similar actions have occurred nationwide as hospitals and universities have dismantled programs, imposed bans, or preemptively surrendered rights protections to avoid litigation or federal disfavor. Administrators and executives are reallocating resources away from transgender people based on guesses about what will please those in power. Fenway's choice contrasts sharply with its 1971 founding as a grassroots clinic serving LGBTQ+ people facing healthcare discrimination.
Read at Advocate.com
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