And if you’d decide to leave, where would you go?

Context for why I’m asking: I’m trans and currently live in Minnesota, I moved here from Florida so I have some idea of how miserable big moves can be. I can get EU citizenship which makes me very lucky, but… Do I sit here and hope Minnesota can protect me from 🥭 or do I try to build a life somewhere else, again?

  • protist
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    3 days ago

    I personally would not. I’ve lived most of my life now in a very blue area in a very red state, and I love it here. But, while I put the “B” in LGBTQ and am in a committed relationship that’s far from monogamous, I’m superficially a cishet white man, and in general I’m treated with more respect by people who have irrational prejudices than many others.

    I use that respect to advocate for the rights of others, and I’m not going to stop being an advocate in Texas. I have friends who are gay, lesbian, and trans who feel the same way and aren’t going anywhere. I would like them all to fight by my side, but I also don’t begrudge anyone who feels like they need to leave this state for safety reasons. This applies particularly acutely to parents of trans children who have to leave to access gender affirming care and not be subject to prosecution.

    All that said, if you’re not an EU citizen but are eligible for citizenship, that does sound like an enticing option. How long would it take you to establish citizenship there? At that point, you’d have dual citizenship and could freely move on either continent. So it boils down to whether you want that or not. Minnesota seems like a fine place to live (but way colder than I could ever tolerate), but so do some EU countries. How will you adapt to the culture? Will you be alright living in an entirely different culture or will you miss US culture too much? What does your current support system look like, and how would you feel about leaving it? You’ve got a lot to think about!