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"Black, white, or brown, native or newcomer, transgender or not, Americans show up for one another," the ad says.
A new ad from the National LGBTQ Task Force, the Transgender Law Center, and Way to Rise aims to counter the anti-trans, anti-immigrant, and racist rhetoric coming from Republican candidates, including Donald Trump.
“Black, white, or brown, native or newcomer, transgender or not, Americans show up for one another,” says the ad, titled “Defiance.” It makes the point that “Americans won’t let anyone dim our light” and calls on viewers to vote November 5 to protect our freedoms.
The ad will run in the battleground states of North Carolina and Georgia on Meta; Connected TV, which delivers ads through internet-connected television sets, streaming content on apps via devices like Roku, Apple TV +, or gaming consoles; YouTube; and Snapchat with a budget of $160,000 beginning today. The groups encourage viewers to share it on social media.
“This ad sends a strong message of inclusion, acceptance and joy in direct response to ads that seek to distract us, divide us and ‘other’ many vulnerable and marginalized people, including our transgender siblings,” Kris Hayashi, director of advocacy and action at the National LGBTQ Task Force, said in a press release. “As our communities continue to learn about the lives of transgender and nonbinary people, we must confront the lies and misinformation being spread about us. We will never be silent in the face of hate, and we encourage LGBTQ+ people and our allies to make their voices heard at the ballot box on November 5.”
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“Black, brown, or white, Native or newcomer, transgender or not, our authentic selves need to be reflected and respected — no exceptions,” said Transgender Law Center Executive Director Shelby Chestnut. “This ad exposes the motivation behind anti-trans attacks: to divide us in order to control us and limit access to health care and a robust public education in which all young people, including trans youth, are free to thrive. We fight for these freedoms year-round and are proud to lead with values and vision in the face of disinformation and division.”
Emily Timm, deputy executive director of Way to Rise, which works toward multiracial democracy said the group was proud to stand for LGBTQ+ rights. "Division and the deliberate othering of certain groups of individuals is the enemy of freedom for everyone. Silence is not an option — it only feeds more division and invites a more pervasive assault on the freedoms we all hold dear as Americans," Timm said.
"The ad employs the Race Class Gender Narrative, a framework developed by ASO Communications, Transgender Law Center, and Lake Research Partners in 2021, which expands on the proven Race Class Narrative," the release explains. "The Race Class Gender Narrative builds solidarity across races and genders while confronting the increased use of racist dog whistles and transphobic siren songs as a strategy to divide us."
Republicans, led by their presidential nominee, have leaned heavily into divisive tropes in the 2024 campaign, as evidenced by Trump’s anti-trans ads and his hate-filled rally last Sunday at Madison Square Garden, which saw horrid insults against immigrants and the people of Puerto Rico, who are U.S. citizens. Surveys have indicated that voters are disgusted by the anti-trans commercials and that they’re not influencing votes, although they appear to be eroding support for trans rights.
