It’s been a year since President Donald Trump was elected to his second term in office, and transgender people across North Central Florida have been feeling the effects of his crackdown on gender expression.
Between executive orders barring gender identity on federal documents to banning transgender individuals from serving in the military, transgender residents say they’re seeking solace in LGBTQ+ support systems and communities to navigate changing legislation.
Carolina Cordero, a 66-year-old transgender woman and Gainesville resident, said she feels Trump’s policies specifically attack transgender women.
“Transphobic bigots have been successful, I would say, in spreading all this damage,” she said.
During his first day in office, Trump passed an executive order ensuring federal agencies use biological sex rather than a person’s preferred gender identity for identification like passports and IDs. This policy impacts all federal buildings, including hospitals and courthouses, Cordero said.
“Efforts to eradicate the biological reality of sex fundamentally attack women by depriving them of their dignity, safety and well-being,” Trump wrote in his executive order. “The erasure of sex in language and policy has a corrosive impact not just on women but on the validity of the entire American system.”
The order prohibits federal agencies from making gender corrections on passports and denies incarcerated transgender people health care and housing based on their gender identity.
Conditions have not only been declining for transgender adults, Cordero said, but for youth as well.
Cordero is involved in the Gainesville chapter of PFLAG, a nationally organized LGBTQ+ advocacy group. She noted more parents of transgender and nonbinary children are attending PFLAG meetings recently, which she suspects is largely due to a worsening climate around trans care.
Florida has adhered to Trump’s executive order and began enforcing it at state government levels, causing pain and fear for members of the transgender community, Cordero said.
“It definitely puts a lot of anguish on our side, because I have to now be careful which bathrooms I use,” Cordero said.
Trump's executive order did not specifically outline consequences for presenting as a woman in public spaces, she said, leading her to wonder how far the government would go to enforce biological sex over gender ideology.
Cordero said life for transgender people will worsen under Project 2025 — a 950-page guidebook of conservative policies to implement.
While Trump distanced himself from the project during last year’s presidential election, several of his executive orders align with Project 2025’s agenda.
Initiatives include banning transgender service members from the military, revoking current employment protections for transgender people and rescinding protection against discrimination.
Allyship to the transgender community is especially important now to help transgender individuals feel safe out in public, Cordero said.
Transgender people have always been an easy target for conservatives because they are a small demographic, said Donn Smith-Lopez, board president of the Pride Community Center of North Central Florida, or PCCNCF.
“The DeSantis administration was attacking and demonizing trans people even before Trump was inaugurated,” Smith-Lopez said. “I think that just added fuel to the fire.”
Legislation on the federal level has affected transgender people locally, he said, as many of them continue to have their biological sexes on federal documentation, like passports. Having a gender they don’t identify with on official identification can cause stress and feel dehumanizing.
The PCCNCF provides resources and support for transgender people and their parents across the North Central Florida region, Smith-Lopez said. The organization is partnered with Southern Legal Counsel to help transgender individuals safely navigate the process of changing their gender markers on identification documents.
Standing in solidarity with the local transgender community lets them know they’re supported, he said.
“I think it’s critical for folks to know that trans people just want to live their authentic lives,” Smith-Lopez said. “They are our friends, and we need to do all in our power to continue to support and protect them.”
Esse Ciego, a 21-year-old nonbinary UF computer science senior, has focused on finding community amid the political turmoil. They’ve felt emotional distress from current state and national legislation, they said, leading them to try to drown politics out.
Ciego was previously a workshop coordinator for Horizons UF, an organization for LGBTQ+ students to connect with one another and adjust to college life. Amid a wave of anti-DEI legislation passing in Florida, Horizons UF lost funding in 2023. Ciego said they felt disheartened their queer community was struggling.
“I, since then, didn’t care about whether or not an administration thinks I’m valid if I’m nonbinary,” Ciego said.
Distancing themself from the news and social media became a coping mechanism to express themselves with less stress. While remaining out of the loop has benefitted them mentally and emotionally, Ciego said it can be a double-edged sword, as prioritizing their mental health can come at the cost of being up-to-date on current events.
“I felt like I can’t keep reacting to [legislation],” Ciego said. “I don’t want to feel like my life is crashing down all the time because of whatever happens in the news.”
Their support system of friends is their biggest source of happiness, Ciego said, which helped them mentally prepare for Trump’s inauguration and take their mind off the current administration. With people to lean on, they find they are no longer dwelling on the fact that things are getting worse, they said.
“It feels good to connect with people,” Ciego said. “It’s hard for [the government] to shut that down.”
Isaac Guzman, a 20-year-old UF biology and women’s studies junior, feels like Trump’s presidency has enabled some individuals to outwardly share hateful views on the queer community. On Halloween, Guzman — a transgender man — and his friend group were called insensitive slurs by passersby, he said.
“We walked away safe, but it was scary. Also very sad,” Guzman said. “Because it was like, wow, 2025 and this is still happening.”
Guzman said he is hyperaware of his appearance and constantly wonders if people perceive him as a man, he said. Being transgender has made everyday tasks, like using the bathroom, overly complicated, he added.
Apart from worrying about his own safety, Guzman is concerned his identity might make others feel uncomfortable in public spaces, which he feels is being normalized under the current presidency.
“You never know who you’re going to come across,” he said.
Being transgender in the current political climate comes with a mixed bag of emotions, Guzman said. Despite feeling fear, anxiety and hesitancy, he said he is grateful to have a support system of like-minded peers who relate to his experiences.
“The community here in Gainesville, especially on campus, is very strong, pretty tight-knit,” Guzman said. “I would say that would be a big part moving forward, especially in these next few years.”
Contact Leona Masangkay at lmasangkay@alligator.org. Follow them on X @leo_amasangkay.
Leona is a second-year journalism student and the Fall 2025 Santa Fe College reporter. They previously worked on the audience and growth team over the summer as a social media strategist. In their free time, Leona enjoys going to the gym, listening to music and watching Marvel movies.
