RNS: The Bible Is A Complex Queer Text

(RNS) — The Christian right has been emboldened by the Trump administration. Nearly every day, there is a headline highlighting the ways President Donald Trump is privileging conservative, white evangelicals while stigmatizing and even targeting other religious communities that make up the diverse tapestry of America. As a result, there has been a predictable increase in targeting the LGBTQ+ community across the country. 

From day one of his presidency, Trump signed an executive order making it the official policy of the United States government to acknowledge only two genders, erasing the identities of an estimated 1.6 million Americans who are transgender. Another executive order revoked federal protections for LGBTQ+ Americans in the federal government, making it legal to fire and refuse to hire federal workers and contractors who identify as LGBTQ+. Transgender service members have been barred from serving in our military, and protections for LGBTQ+ people in health care settings have been revoked. References to transgender people have been removed from national parks and historic sites across the country. And many Republicans have suggested they are seeking to push for the Supreme Court to roll back its 2015 ruling extending marriage equality to LGBTQ+ Americans.