The US trans community has an unlikely new ally – the National Rifle Association
A sign marks the entrance to the National Rifle Association (NRA) headquarters building. (J. David Ake/Getty Images)
A sign marks the entrance to the National Rifle Association (NRA) headquarters building. (J. David Ake/Getty Images)
The US trans community has found a surprising new ally: the NRA, which has shared a post on X in support of their right to bear arms.
In response to reports that the US Department of Justice was considering banning trans people buying and owning guns, a spokesperson for the National Rifle Association (NRA) posted on X/Twitter: “The Second Amendment isn’t up for debate. [We support the] rights of all law-abiding Americans to purchase, possess and use firearms.”
According to CNN, the spokesperson went on to say: “[The] NRA does not, and will not, support any policy proposals that implement sweeping gun bans that arbitrarily strip law-abiding citizens of their Second Amendment rights without due process.”
The Second Amendment isn’t up for debate. pic.twitter.com/AQwouV4VDd
— NRA (@NRA) September 5, 2025
Gun Owners of America (GOA], another large lobbying group, also spoke out against the proposals.
“[The] GOA opposes any and all gun bans. Full stop,” a spokesperson wrote on X.
GOA opposes any & all gun bans. Full stop. pic.twitter.com/nW0XzaLRhM
— Gun Owners of America (@GunOwners) September 4, 2025
Reports of a possible ban come in the wake of a deadly shooting at a Catholic school in Minneapolis last month, which left two youngsters dead. The shooter, 23-year-old Robin Westman, was transgender. In recent years, right-wing pundits have claimed that trans people, who make up around 0.6 per cent of the US population, commit violent crime at a higher rate than their cisgender peers.
@pinknews The National R1fle Association of America (NRA) has come out in opposition to news that Trump’s Department of Justice is considering a ban on trans people owning guns in the wake of a deadly sh00ting in Minneapolis last week. In a statement, the NRA said: “The Second Amendment isn’t up for debate. […] NRA does not, and will not, support any policy proposals that implement sweeping gun bans that arbitrarily strip law-abiding citizens of their Second Amendment rights without due process.” The statement comes in response to suggestions that trans people in the U.S. could be banned from owning guns, most likely by declaring gender dysphoria to be a “serious mental illness” that outweighs their Second Amendment rights. Other critics of the policy say the proposal weaponises stigma against trans people while doing nothing to address gun vi0lence. #US #politics #secondamendment #transgender #lgbtqia #DonaldTrump ♬ News, news, seriousness, tension(1077866) – Lyrebirds music
However, research for The Violence Project, which has data from the more than 190 mass shootings carried out since 1966, has shown that cis men were, by far, the most responsible for carrying out the killings.
Meanwhile, a Washington Post report from 2023 concluded that, despite claims from Donald Trump Jnr and right-wing pundit Benny Johnson, there was no ‘clear epidemic’ of transgender mass shooters.
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