Trump’s Executive Order Ends ‘Trans’ Tyranny and Protects Females

Thanks to Donald Trump’s new executive order, entitled “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” the federal government is no longer coming after you for not recognizing “transwomen” as women or “transmen” as men in schools, workplaces, and public accommodations.

This is a major about-face from the Biden–Harris administration’s insidious promotion of all things “trans,” endangering children (indoctrination, chemical castration, “trans” mutilation surgery), females (privacy and safety), and faithful Christians everywhere (mandatory speech requirements in employment and education).

Trump’s Fidelity to His Election Promise

Trump was true to his commitment over a year ago to work against the “left-wing gender insanity being pushed on our children [which] is an act of child abuse” and “to stop the chemical, physical, and emotional mutilation of our youth.” The executive order fleshed out what was arguably the greatest line in his Inaugural Address: “As of today, it will henceforth be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female.”

This one action alone justifies the outcome of the election (there are, of course, other reasons) because the eradication of any non-circular definition of “woman” and “man” (or “male” and “female”) does inestimable damage to this most essential element of human civilization.

Description of the Problem for Women

The opening “Purpose” section artfully summarizes the problem by presenting it as a problem for women: “Ideologues who deny the biological reality of sex have … used … coercive means to permit men to … gain access to intimate single-sex spaces … designed for women…. This is wrong.” Such efforts “attack women by depriving them of their dignity, safety, and well-being.” Moreover, “basing Federal policy on truth is critical to scientific inquiry, public safety, morale, and trust in government itself.”

Trump’s executive order rightfully pinpoints the locus of confusion as “replacing the immutable biological reality of sex with an internal, fluid, and subjective sense of self unmoored from biological facts.” The sad result is that laws originally designed to protect women are perverted to “undermine them, replacing longstanding, cherished legal rights and values with an identity-based, inchoate social concept.”

In order to preserve the original intent of legislation to protect women, the government has no choice but to revert back to a biologically based definition of what a woman is and what a man is. “Accordingly, my Administration will defend women’s rights and protect freedom of conscience by using clear and accurate language and policies that recognize women are biologically female, and men are biologically male.”

Definition of “Sex” and of “Male” and “Female”

The second section of “Policy and Definitions” pulls the rug out from under the house of cards that stand atop “gender ideology” and “gender identity” by re-establishing a secure basis for “sex.”

Under Trump’s watch, the federal government will no longer define a “male” and “female” by subjective identity but solely by objective biological identity, i.e., by gametes or reproductive function. “‘Female’ means a person belonging, at conception, to the sex that produces the large reproductive cell [i.e., egg cell or ovum]. ‘Male’ means a person belonging, at conception, to the sex that produces the small reproductive cell [i.e., the sperm cell].”

Impact on Federal Law and Policy

Sections 3 through 8 largely spell out the practical effects on federal policy and regulations of reverting back to biologically objective definitions of “sex” that are based on male-female reproductive complementarity.

Perhaps the biggest hit was rescinding part of Biden’s executive order, which had redefined the prohibition of “sex discrimination” in Title IX of the Educational Amendments Act to include not only “sexual orientation discrimination” but also “gender identity discrimination.” In schools that receive federal funding, males will no longer be allowed into female restrooms, locker rooms, female living facilities, and sports (the latter two were still being worked on at the time of the Biden administration’s revisions to Title IX in April 2024).

Biden’s Title IX executive order had recently faced challenges. With lawsuits from 26 Republican attorneys general, the Biden administration’s revision of Title IX was on hold in their states. Earlier this month, a federal judge ruled that Biden’s revision was unconstitutional. Last week, the House of Representatives passed a bill prohibiting men from competing in women’s school sports. It now goes to the Senate.

Also according to Trump’s new executive order, as regards facilities that receive federal funding, “males are not [to be] detained in women’s prisons or housed in women’s detention centers” or into female-only “rape shelters.” And, “no federal funds are [to be] expended for any medical procedure, treatment, or drug for the purpose of conforming an inmate’s appearance to that of the opposite sex.”

“Intimate spaces designated for women, girls, or females (or for men, boys, or males) are [to be ] designated by sex and not identity.” This would include, of course, restrooms, locker rooms, and showers.

“Agencies shall remove all … regulations … that promote or otherwise inculcate gender ideology…. Agencies shall take all necessary steps … to end the Federal funding of gender ideology,” including in federal grants. “Government-issued identification documents, including passports, visas, and Global Entry cards, [shall] accurately reflect the holder’s sex,” as also all “applicable personnel records.”

All federal guidance publications from previous administrations inconsistent with this new executive order are to be immediately rescinded, including (here I offer a selection of a much fuller list than in the executive order): “The White House Toolkit on Transgender Equality”; “Creating Inclusive and Nondiscriminatory School Environments for LGBTQI+ Students”; “Supporting LGBTQI+ Youth and Families in School”; “Supporting Intersex Students”; “Supporting Transgender Youth in School”; “Confronting Anti-LGBTQI+ Harassment in Schools”; “Enforcement of Title IX … With Respect to Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in Light of Bostock v. Clayton County”; “Enforcement Guidance on Harassment [of LGBTQI+ Persons] in the Workplace” (April 29, 2024).

In addition, the attorney general is charged with issuing “guidance to ensure the freedom to express the binary nature of sex and the right to single-sex spaces in workplaces and federally funded entities covered by the Civil Rights Act of 1964.” Presumably, this would include protection for teachers in schools who decline to use “trans” pronouns for students, teachers, and staff.

Undoubtedly, this executive order will be challenged in the courts, especially in relation to the Supreme Court’s decision in Bostock v. Clayton County (2020), which addressed Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This underscores the importance of strong court appointments. The executive order would not affect areas over which the federal government does not have authority. But it is an excellent start to the Trump administration.

READ MORE:

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Is the Transgender Movement Really Backing Down?

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Robert A. J. Gagnon is a visiting scholar at Wesley Biblical Seminary in Ridgeland, Miss., and has taught previously at Middlebury College, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, and Houston Christian University. He has degrees from Dartmouth College (B.A.), Harvard Divinity School (M.T.S.), and Princeton Theological Seminary (Ph.D.). He has published a number of works, including The Bible and Homosexual Practice (Abingdon).

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