My clarion call today is to notice and appreciate our transgender siblings

The International Transgender Day of Visibility is in just five days. Meanwhile, 5 days ago, the governor of Arkansas signed a law that bans transgender school children from using toilets that match their self-identified gender experience.
The governor said schools are no place for the “woke” agenda. I wish enlightenment was as simple as not caring where people tinkled.
Arkansas is the 4th state to impose anti-trans bathroom laws on students. The governor of Kentucky vetoed an anti-Trans bill, bless him. While the Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina says God actually formed him to oppose LGBTQ equality.
A lot of the anti-drag legislation lately is really anti-trans in nature.
By broadly defining drag, they are meant to prevent anything but binary gender expression in public, which of course would be particularly onerous to transgender people.
Of course, these bills are hateful. Their sponsors don’t like Queer culture, or LGBTQ people living out loud, and anything that threatens patriarchy, as transgender affirmation does, terrifies them.
So, their response is to try to erase and silence anything beyond binary gender norms.
There are some transgender clergy who will be praying with us today via technology, and I want you to really see them. See the courage they’ve needed just to live their truth.
Think of their generosity in sharing themselves with us today. Notice their beautiful hearts. Notice their bravery. Notice their kindness in lending their talents to our worship today.
It was trans educators who helped me understand and embrace my own non-binary status. They gave me language for my experience which doesn’t fit neatly into contrived boxes. When people live their truth, it is a gift to us all.

My clarion call today is to notice and appreciate our transgender siblings. And once we see them as siblings, we can never again be silent when they are under siege.
May God’s blessing be upon our transgender friends and neighbors. Amen.