: Individuals who identify as male or female.

Visibility has exploded, from Pose on FX, which centered on trans women of color in the ballroom scene, to Disclosure on Netflix, which deconstructed Hollywood’s trans history. Laverne Cox, Elliot Page, and Hunter Schafer have become household names, shifting the public’s perception from medical anomaly to human experience. Yet, with visibility comes the "trans tipping point"—a double-edged sword where increased representation invites increased backlash.

The modern LGBTQ+ rights movement didn’t start in boardrooms; it started in the streets, led largely by transgender women of color. Figures like and Sylvia Rivera were at the forefront of the 1969 Stonewall Uprising. At the time, the distinction between "gay" and "transgender" was less rigid in the public eye—everyone who defied traditional gender and sexual norms was grouped together.