Sarah McBride has a message for the LGBTQ+ youth: “You belong here in America.”
McBride, the first openly transgender member of Congress, spoke with PEOPLE at the Human Rights Campaign’s Greater New York Dinner on February 1 and offered words of comfort to young queer people in America who are concerned about their futures.
Despite President Donald Trump’s administration’s recent announcement of new policies aimed at LGBTQ+ people, McBride isn’t giving up.
“While we see attacks against our community from the federal government and too many state governments, also know that we have millions of people who are fighting alongside us, to fight for you and to deliver progress for all of us,” according to PEOPLE.
“Hang in there. Find that hope in all of your allies who love you. And know that we are unstoppable.”
McBride made history in the 2024 elections by winning Delaware’s sole seat in the House of Representatives. Four years prior, she became the nation’s first openly transgender state senator.
Since then, she has been a strong advocate for young queer people in the United States, as well as a vocal critic of conservatives’ growing attacks on the LGBTQ+ community.
During the 2024 election, as Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign became more serious about national issues and began to gain ground in the polls, Trump spent a staggering amount of his campaign funds on ads that demonized the transgender community, instilling fear in Americans in order to boost his support.
One popular Trump ad, accusing Harris of promoting taxpayer-funded sex changes for transgender inmates and allowing “men” to play in girls’ sports, concluded with the phrase, “Kamala is for they/them.” “President Trump is for you.”
Trump’s divisive rhetoric helped propel him back into the White House, where McBride claims his administration is still using transgender people “as pawns to advance their agenda of gutting the federal government.”
McBride tells PEOPLE that despite ongoing anti-LGBTQ+ attacks, she is still prepared to defend her “beautiful yet vulnerable community.”
“We’re not going to let that stand,” she says. “We’re going to show the American people the strategy at play here … and also highlight the very real harm — not just against trans people, not just against the LGBTQ community, but against people across this country who’ll be negatively impacted by these anti-equality policies.”
Meanwhile, McBride hopes that anyone who feels othered will stop believing that they are not enough.
“I understand this is a scary situation. “I know you’re afraid,” she says. “Perhaps you wonder whether the heart of this country is big enough to love you, too.”
“But know that you are beautiful, that you matter and that you belong here in America.”
