22-year-old Hazel has lived in the US her whole life, but since Trump’s election she’s been considering leaving her native Texas. “I don’t feel safe being myself in the United States,” she says.

Hazel, who is trans, has witnessed transphobia permeate mainstream US politics for years. But with Trump back in the White House, it seems unlikely that the situation will improve. “I can’t get my gender marker changed to reflect my true self,” she says, referring to the State Department’s refusal to issue new US passports with “X” gender markers and the ongoing suspension of processing all applications from citizens seeking to update their passport’s gender marker. “I’m at a loss for what to do right now,” she says. “All I want is to feel safe and not live in constant fear.”

It’s entirely unsurprising that trans people like Hazel are fearful of what a Trump presidency will mean for their rights. One of the very first acts of Trump’s second term was to order the government to regard gender as immutable and discriminate against trans citizens: “As of today, it will henceforth be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders: male and female,” he declared in his Inaugural Address. Since then the President has signed a slew of anti-trans executive orders, including one which seeks to ban federal funding for youth gender-affirming care despite gender-affirming care drastically reducing the risk of suicide.

With all this in mind, Hazel has been considering relocating to a country more sympathetic towards the trans community, such as Canada, Norway or the Netherlands. “I’m technically able to go to Norway, because I’m of Norwegian descent. I still have some family there, so I could possibly lean on them a little bit while I get on my feet,” she explains. “I just need to figure out how it all works and see if I’m able to do it.” While Norway isn’t perfect, they have robust anti-discrimination laws in place to protect trans people and the population is generally in favour of trans rights (by contrast, in the US, 54 per cent of all adults believe society has either “gone too far” or “been about right” in terms of trans acceptance).

Hazel is not alone. Research published by Data For Progress in 2023 found that 8 per cent of all transgender people in the US have already moved out of their community or state as a result of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, while an additional 43 per cent were considering moving. Today, with Trump in power, it’s likely these figures are significantly higher.

Swathi Sekhar is director of protection initiatives at Rainbow Railroad, a charity which helps LGBTQ+ people escape state-sponsored violence. “Within the first 24 hours of Trump’s re-election, we received 1,177 requests for help (RFH) from the United States. Up until that point, we had received 700 RFH from the USA in the entire year,” she explains, adding that 51 per cent of these new requests were from trans people. “We saw another spike in RFH from the US in January after the inauguration and expect this trend to continue.”

Max, 29, has also been weighing up his options since Trump’s election. The Colorado-based personal trainer says he felt “shocked and terrified” when he saw the election result back in November. “I knew that myself and trans youth would be targeted through legislation banning our access to care,” he says.

Like Hazel, he is looking into moving across the Atlantic, and is currently considering relocating to Spain. “I know that Spain has good legal protections for trans people and accessible gender affirming care,” he says. “I don’t have any friends in Spain so I would be starting anew.” While the thought of building a new life from scratch makes him “anxious”, he feels “hopeful” about the prospect of moving to a safer country. “I am just beginning the process,” he continues, adding that he is meeting with an immigration lawyer this week to “explore all options”.

All I want is to live a life free from fear and discrimination

It’s worth stressing that moving is a privilege not everyone can afford – and that for the time being, it’s difficult for trans US citizens to claim asylum abroad. Sekhar explains that anyone wishing to flee the US would have to demonstrate that “they are unable to live safely in any part of the United States”, and that as a result “US citizens usually do not meet the international legal definition of a refugee”. Plus, given that we’re still in the early days of the new administration, “it is still very unclear as to how the US government’s anti-gender policies will be implemented on a state-by-state level, and that murkiness will bring more uncertainty into the refugee determination process.”

As Sekhar highlights, at present it could be difficult to seek asylum as a trans US citizen. But if you can afford to immigrate, it’s worth considering your options and speaking to a lawyer. “For those seeking to relocate through other immigration channels or pathways, these options vary significantly on a country-by-country basis, and trans US citizens should seek legal advice from immigration professionals wherever they wish to relocate,” Sekhar suggests. “In general, trans US citizens should ensure that they are well informed about the rules and regulations in the country where they want to relocate prior to travelling there.”

Focus on looking into countries where trans rights are protected and attitudes are generally progressive (as aforementioned, Spain, Norway, the Netherlands and Canada are all decent options). And even if you can’t move overseas, it might make sense for you to move states – for example, if you’re in a vehemently anti-trans red state (such as Florida or Tennessee), consider moving to a more accepting state (such as Washington or Minnesota).

When so much of the harmful, inflammatory rhetoric in the media attempts to dehumanise trans people and normalise Trump’s hostility towards them, it’s worth remembering that all trans people want is freedom, autonomy, and peace. As Hazel says: “All I want is to live a life free from fear and discrimination”. She shouldn’t have to leave the US to achieve that.