Transphobia today is not something to be ignored or downplayed – it is serious, growing and leads to real-world violence against trans people, as well as significantly impacting their wellbeing. However, we also sometimes need to turn the volume down on these hateful voices in order to make sure the unfortunately quieter majority can be heard, loud and clear. 

Scrolling through Twitter or reading the papers, you could be fooled into thinking that there aren’t many trans allies out there. The trope that lesbians are somehow inherently anti-trans is a classic example of this – I’ve even heard young lesbians absorb this damaging concept and be afraid to proudly call themselves lesbians as a direct result. But the research, and my life experience, tells us otherwise: lesbians are incredibly supportive of trans people. 

In fact, Just Like Us’ recent research found that of all LGBTQ+ identities, other than trans and non-binary people themselves, lesbian young adults were most likely to say they know a trans person (92%), and most likely to say they are “supportive” or “very supportive” of trans people (96%).

The research also shows that the majority of young adults are supportive of trans people, and that most of those who aren’t, don’t even know a trans person. We found that knowing someone who is trans in real life leads to you being twice as likely to call yourself ‘supportive’ – unsurprising, given trans people are human beings!

Trans people are loved. That’s what the research shows us. That’s what I see in the people I meet, whatever their background, age, gender or sexual orientation, in everyday life. And that’s what young people desperately need to know.