Laverne Cox has broken her silence on whether or not she will leave the US following Donald Trump’s election victory.
The 52-year-old transgender actress – who recently appeared on the red carpet at the InStyle Imagemaker Awards – opened up about the possibility of leaving the country in a new interview Variety.
The Orange Is The New Black star revealed that she and several transgender friends are concerned about the Trump campaign’s anti-trans rhetoric and are considering an exodus from the US.
She said: ‘We are doing research on different cities in Europe and in the Caribbean.’
Laverne even went so far as to compare the Trump administration’s anti-LGBTQIA+ rhetoric to the German Empire of the early 20th century.
Laverne Cox has broken her silence on whether or not she will leave the US following Donald Trump’s election victory
She explained: ‘There was a thriving gay community in Berlin before the rise of Nazism. They attacked Jewish people. They attacked immigrants, they attacked queer and trans people.
‘I don’t want to have too much fear, but I am scared. As a public figure, with all my privileges, I am afraid, and I am especially afraid because I am a public figure. I feel like I could be targeted. I think they spent almost $100 million on anti-trans ads. It is very worrying.’
Trump will become the 47th president of the US after defeating Kamala Harris in a landslide last Tuesday.
Trump has remained outspoken about his stance on transgender society in America, as he unveiled his dramatic plan during an all-female Fox News town hall on The Faulkner Focus just weeks before he was re-elected.
When asked what he would do “about the transgender issue in women’s sports,” Trump said he plans to “just ban it.”
“It’s such an easy question,” he said, smiling.
“Everyone in the room and you know that answer: We’re not going to let it happen.
The 52-year-old transgender actress opened up about the possibility of leaving the country in a new interview with Variety; she was seen in New York last month
Trump will become the 47th US president after defeating Kamala Harris in a landslide last Tuesday; he is seen with wife Melania Trump and 18-year-old son Barron
‘Yesterday they had a volleyball match, did you see that? “When someone is transitioning, we have to be very careful because it could end your political career if you say it a little bit off but have transitioned from male to female,” the president-elect added.
The former president was apparently referring to Blaire Fleming, a San Jose State University (SJSU) volleyball player.
Fleming, a redshirt senior, has been cited as the reason four schools have forfeited games against SJSU so far this season due to safety concerns.
They recently went viral for spiking a ball and forcefully hitting another player in the face. Even the broadcaster noticed the woman’s pink face after she was hit.
“And I saw the blow,” Trump told the crowd of women. “I’ve never seen a ball hit that hard and hit the girl on the head.”
“Other people, even in volleyball, have been permanently injured badly,” he continued.
‘We are absolutely stopping it. You can’t have it. He is a man who is in the game.”
Faulkner then stepped in and pressed Trump further on the subject.
Trump has remained outspoken about what his plans are for transgender society in the US, saying he would “simply ban” transgender women from participating in sports
‘So how do you stop it? Do you go to the sports competitions? Go to the Olympic council?’ the Fox News host asked.
‘You just forbid it. The president forbids it, you just don’t let it happen,” Trump quickly responded.
The crowd of women erupted in praise for the ex-president’s policy proposal.
Meanwhile, his former opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, expressed an opposing view during an interview that same day.
Fox News host Bret Baier asked during his highly anticipated interview whether Harris supports taxpayer-funded sex operations for trans inmates and illegal immigrants.
“Every transgender inmate in the prison system would have access,” Harris said in 2019, which the Trump campaign turned into an ad attacking the Democrat.
Baier asked her if she still holds the same beliefs.
“So are you still in favor of using taxpayer dollars to help prisoners or detained illegal aliens transition to another gender?” Baier asked.
Harris responded without saying what she personally believes: “I will follow the law, a law that Donald Trump has actually followed.”
“You probably know it by now: It’s a matter of public record that under the Donald Trump administration, these surgeries were available on a medical-need basis to people in the federal prison system,” she added.
The law she was talking about referred to policies put in place under the Trump administration before she and Biden entered the White House.
The policy allows incarcerated transgender people to receive gender-affirming medical care as needed based on individual needs.