Cal Smith
@calebllsmith.bsky.social
Trans Kansan going to law school. He/They Pronouns. 🌈🏳️⚧️
Let me tell y’all about Camp Ground - a multi-faith retreat for people doing justice work. This work is exhausting - we need time to rest and recharge. I attended last year and found that and more. If you serve community and are flagging - please apply! Apps close Sunday. campgroundretreat.org
On Monday night, SCOTUS issued an order indicating they may be inclined to side with policies that force teachers to out LGBTQI+ students to their legal guardians. Forced outing is something kind of hard to talk about. So it felt like maybe we should talk about it. sames.substack.com/parents-righ...
Parents’ Rights and Parents’ Wrongs
Forced Outing from the School Hallway to the Supreme Court to the State of the Union
open.substack.com
Parents are a vital part of trans medical care decisions - and always have been. Learn the facts about transgender medical care: www.americanprogress.org/article/tran...
Transgender Medical Care: What You Should Know and How To Preserve Access to Care
Transgender medical care is safe, effective, lifesaving—but access to it is under attack.
americanprogress.org
Voter ID policies requiring proof of citizenship (like the SAVE Act) are voter suppression. If enacted, millions of trans people could struggle to vote. Read our analysis here: www.americanprogress.org/article/the-...
The SAVE Act Could Keep Millions of Transgender Americans From Voting
Should this legislation pass, it would further discrimination against transgender people and could keep millions of voters out of the voting booth.
americanprogress.org
President “Keep Politics Out of Sports” Trump brings in the USA Men’s Hockey Team to parade around in the #StateoftheUnion
Conversion therapy is discredited junk science that endangers kids. SCOTUS might greenlight it anyway. @hvnorrisphd.bsky.social breaks down the case for @USAToday.com: t.co/C5rJw77uef
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2025/10/08/supreme-court-gay-conversion-therapy-trans-rights/86549177007/?taid=68e6362387789a0001ca7946&utm_campaign=trueanthem&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twit...
t.co
Citizens United opened the floodgates of slimy dark money into our politics. It’s time we slam them shut. Glad to have CAP in the fight :-)
Tom Moore@thmoore.bsky.social · 11mo agoFifteen years after Citizens United opened the floodgates of corporate and dark political money, the Center for American Progress has figured out how to slam them back shut. CAP published its groundbreaking how-to report today: "The Corporate Power Reset That Makes Citizens United Irrelevant."
Trans people, like everyone else, deserve safety and dignity. Popularity - or unpopularity - of that statement has no bearing on its truth. That's kind of the whole point of civil rights.
Congratulations to CAP's @calebllsmith.bsky.social for being listed as one of @outinnationalsecurity.org and @newamerica.org's Out Leaders 2025 honoree. #OutLeadership2025 www.outinnationalsecurity.org/honor-roll/2...
As the Trump administration continues to censor LGBTQI+ data and slash critical research funding, it's more important than ever to understand the needs of LGBTQI+ communities. Don't miss this important conversation with CAP thought leaders on Monday, July 28: www.americanprogress.org/events/in-co...
Join me tomorrow for our conversation about the 2024 CAP LGBTQI+ Community Survey! RSVP here: www.americanprogress.org/events/in-co...
Sara Habein, a mother of two in Montana, recently learned that she has cysts in her brain. Every six months, her doctors check that the cysts aren’t growing. If she didn’t have Medicaid, she's not sure what she would do. Now, Trump’s “one big, beautiful” law threatens her coverage.
Over a million queer women rely on Medicaid. What happens if they lose it?
Lesbian and bisexual women are more likely to be low-income, more likely to be parents and more likely to rely on Medicaid. They could fall through the cracks of Trump’s new tax law.
19thnews.org
Virtual LGBTQ event alert! 11am on Monday, I'll be joined by several CAP colleagues to discuss new findings from our 2024 LGBTQI+ Survey. Topics include the disabled LGBTQI+ community, the LGBTQI+ wage gap, caregiving, and more. RSVP and find out more here! www.americanprogress.org/events/in-co...
In Conversation: The 2024 LGBTQI+ Community Survey
Join CAP for a panel and discussion about new insights into LGBTQI+ experiences.
americanprogress.org
Today at 11 am ET: Don't miss our virtual event on presidential appeasement and the Supreme Court in 2025. www.americanprogress.org/events/presi... We'll be joined by @audrelawdamercy.bsky.social, @leahlitman.bsky.social, @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social, and @anthonymkreis.bsky.social.
Presidential Appeasement and the Supreme Court: The State of the Court in 2025
Please join the Center for American Progress for a virtual event on presidential appeasement and the Supreme Court in 2025.
americanprogress.org
My colleague Sara at @americanprogress.bsky.social examined our CAP LGBTQI+ Community Survey, revealing that LGBTQI+ households earn just 85 cents for every $1 of non-LGBTQI+ households. LGBTQI+ women households earn even less, at just 52 cents per $1. www.americanprogress.org/article/the-...
Some of the very best people I know have created a camp - it’s a retreat for those of us who do social justice work. Camp Ground is about rest: no work allowed. If you organize, advocate, etc in ANY capacity (professionally, as a volunteer, in your spare time) this camp is probably for you.
MUST-READ: My CAP colleague Alice Lillydahl has a terrific new column out today on why appeasement of Trump's illegal demands may be far more dangerous to organizations than compliance is.
The Dangers of Obeying: 4 Risks for Organizations Bowing to the Trump Administration
The Trump administration is demanding unprecedented power and punishing those who refuse to comply, but civil society acting peacefully with collective courage can build a stronger democracy.
americanprogress.org
Right-wing senators are trying to defund coverage of trans medical care. A new report out today from my colleague @hvnorrisphd.bsky.social reveals: 28% of insured trans folks are covered through Medicaid and 6% through ACA plans. Coverage MUST be protected. www.americanprogress.org/article/lgbt...
LGBTQI+ People Are Underinsured and Experience Health Insurance Discrimination in Key Areas
New Center for American Progress survey findings demonstrate how LGBTQI+ people are at greater risk of losing access to health care under the proposed One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
americanprogress.org
Today's Something Censored - The Department of Defense had a detailed handbook on supporting transgender service members, providing policies that ensured equity and covered topics from dress code to commander responsibilities. It has since been censored, but we have a copy.
Key state department officials shared at a national convening how LGBTQI+ rights are an integral part of international policy. Secretary Blinken and other leaders affirmed the importance of diversity in international policy. The article is no longer available on government sites.
Today’s Something Censored - Wiped from the TSA website; policies and guidance on traveling through TSA for transgender, non-binary, and gender diverse people. Much of this advice is still helpful; highly recommend a read for those traveling.
Also, on Skrmetti. Folks are going to analyze, write about the harms of the ruling. While we do, it is SO important to remember: The people who sued for care, went before SCOTUS and argued for equal rights were right to do so. Their strategy was solid, their aim was correct. Hope is never wrong.
Listen. We cannot predicate fighting on winning. We're going to lose a lot in the days to come, and if we’re going to make it through the nights we need to find something to fuel us that runs deeper than hope. We’re past hope. We don't follow hope. Hope follows us.
What U.S. v. Skrmetti Did, What It Didn’t Do, and What It Can Never Do
There is going to be a lot of catastrophizing today. We lost U.S. v. Skrmetti, one of the biggest transgender civil rights cases of our…
samamesesq.medium.com
Today, SCOTUS chose politicians over doctors, misinformation over science, and special interest groups over families. When leaders choose to cower rather than defend, it’s devastating. But, it is also clarifying. This ruling is a directive to us - to keep fighting. In community, we will win. 🏳️⚧️
Today, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a Tennessee law barring lifesaving medical care for transgender minors. In response, @calebllsmith.bsky.social, director of LGBTQI+ Policy at the Center for American Progress, issued the following statement: www.americanprogress.org/press/statem...
STATEMENT: Supreme Court Ruled Against Bodily Autonomy in Skrmetti Case
americanprogress.org
Today's Something Censored - The Department of Housing and Urban Development compiled a resource on ensuring equal access to shelters/ housing programs for trans people. While it was removed from HUD's website, it is still a powerful tool for organizations committed to providing inclusive resources.
Its #LGBTQIAEqualPay day! CAP data shows LGBTQI+ women lose over 39k a year and Black LGBTQI+ households lose over 33k. We have to fight back against this administration that is destroying every right and enforcement institution on the books. www.americanprogress.org/article/the-...
The 2024 LGBTQI+ Wage Gap
In recognition of LGBTQIA+ Equal Pay Awareness Day, new analysis from the Center for American Progress’ LGBTQI+ Community Survey shows that in 2024, LGBTQI+ households made just 85 cents for every dol...
americanprogress.org
Our latest shows that LGBTQI+ households lose $12,600 per year to the wage gap, and the gaps are wider for LGBTQI+ people who are trans, women, and people of color. We must fight the claw backs to our civil rights enforcement agencies for #LGBTQIAEqualPay.🏳️🌈 www.americanprogress.org/article/the-...
The 2024 LGBTQI+ Wage Gap
In recognition of LGBTQIA+ Equal Pay Awareness Day, new analysis from the Center for American Progress’ LGBTQI+ Community Survey shows that in 2024, LGBTQI+ households made just 85 cents for every dol...
americanprogress.org
Today's Something Censored - The Family and Youth Services Bureau (FYSB) once provided a resource for organizations and community centers on supporting LGBTQIA2S+ Youth as part of FYSB homeless youth programs. LGBTQIA2S+ young people are more likely to be homeless than their peers.
This weekend, Trump spent millions on a vanity project/military parade. Among other anti-veteran cuts, the VA recently cut coverage of trans care, citing costs. The parade would've covered a year of all trans vets' medical bills 90 times over. www.americanprogress.org/article/trum...
Trump Is Throwing Himself a Birthday Parade While Veterans and Military Families Face Cuts
President Donald Trump is throwing himself a costly military birthday parade while veteran and military families are suffering under the impact of ongoing cuts to critical programs and services.
americanprogress.org