U.S. Reps. Sarah McBride (D-Del.) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) on Thursday reintroduced a bill that would sanction foreign officials who carry out anti-LGBTQ human rights abuses.

A press release notes the Global Respect Act would direct “the U.S. government to identify and sanction foreign persons who are responsible for torture, arbitrary detention, physical attacks, murder, and other flagrant abuses against LGBTQI+ individuals.” The measure would also require “annual human rights reporting from the State Department and strengthens coordination with foreign governments, civil society, and the private sector to prevent anti-LGBTQI+ persecution.”

“Freedom and dignity should never depend on your zip code or who holds power in your country,” said McBride.

The Delaware Democrat who is the first openly transgender person elected to Congress notes consensual same-sex sexual relations remain criminalized in more than 60 countries, while “far too many (countries) look away from the violence that follows.”

“The Global Respect Act reaffirms a simple truth: no one should be targeted for who they are or whom they love,” said McBride. “This bill strengthens America’s voice on human rights.”

“No person should ever face imprisonment, violence, or discrimination on the basis of who they are,” added Fitzpatrick. “The Global Respect Act imposes real and necessary sanctions on those who carry out these abuses and strengthens America’s resolve to uphold basic human rights worldwide.”

The Global Respect Act has 119 co-sponsors. McBride and Fitzpatrick reintroduced it in the U.S. House of Representatives on the annual Transgender Day of Remembrance.

“As we mark Transgender Day of Remembrance, we reaffirm that no one, no matter where they live in the world, should be persecuted or subjected to violence simply because of who they are or whom they love,” said Mark Bromley, co-chair of the Council for Global Equality. “The Global Respect Act seeks to hold the world’s worst perpetrators of violence against LGBTQI+ people accountable by leveraging our sanctions regimes to uphold the human rights of all people.”

Outright International, Amnesty International USA, Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, ORAM (Organization for Refuge, Asylum and Migration), and the Human Rights Campaign are among the other groups that have endorsed the bill.

U.S. Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) in June introduced the Global Equality Act in the U.S. Senate. Gay California Congressman Robert Garcia and U.S. Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) on Monday introduced the International Human Defense Act that would require the State Department to promote LGBTQ and intersex rights abroad.

The promotion of LGBTQ and intersex rights was a cornerstone of the Biden-Harris administration’s overall foreign policy.

The global LGBTQ and intersex rights movement since the Trump-Vance administration froze nearly all U.S. foreign aid has lost more than an estimated $50 million in funding.

The U.S. Agency for International Development, which funded dozens of advocacy groups around the world, officially shut down on July 1. Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier this year said the State Department would administer the remaining 17 percent of USAID contracts that had not been cancelled.

Adelita Grijalva, Arizona’s new 7th District representative, was sworn into Congress last week, vowing to hold the Trump–Vance administration accountable and to protect LGBTQ rights.

Grijalva becomes the first Latina ever to represent the state of Arizona.

Her swearing in was delayed by a record 50 days because she vowed to be the deciding House vote in favor of a discharge petition to release the Epstein files, although House Speaker Mike Johnson blamed the delay on the federal government shutdown.

She began her speech by honoring her late father, Raúl Grijalva, who represented the same district until his death earlier this year.

“I rise today, the proud granddaughter of a bracero – a hard-working Mexican immigrant who came to this country with hope for a better life,” said Rep. Grijalva. “And I stand as the proud daughter of a U.S. congressman – a man who spent his entire life fighting for justice, equity, and dignity for the most vulnerable. From working as a vaquero, to serving in Congress in just a single generation – that is the promise of this country.”

During her swearing-in remarks, she referenced the slew of issues surrounding her election — most notably the release of the Epstein files, her support for immigrants, and her support of the LGBTQ community, especially trans people, as rhetoric from the Trump–Vance administration has increasingly vilified them.

“What is most concerning is not what this administration has done, but what the majority in this body has failed to do: hold Trump accountable as the co-equal branch of government that we are.”

“We need to fight for our immigrant communities and veterans. We need to stand up for our public schools, children, and educators. We need to respect tribal sovereignty and our environment. We need to stand up for LGBTQ+ rights. Because that’s what the American people expect us to do — fight for them. That is why I will sign the discharge petition right now to release the Epstein files, because justice cannot wait another day. Adelante mi gente. Muchas Gracias!”

This sentiment echoes what she told the Blade in an exclusive interview earlier this month, in which she emphasized that speaking up for the most marginalized is part of her duty as a representative.

“Trans rights are human rights. That’s it,” she said firmly. “When I say I’ll speak up for those who don’t feel they have a voice, I mean everybody — especially people who’ve been pushed to the margins.”

Activists and political observers say the major Democratic victories on the East Coast last week prove anti-transgender attacks are no longer effective.

Democrats in Virginia, New Jersey, and New York who defended transgender rights directly — Abigail Spanberger, Mikie Sherrill, and Zohran Mamdani — won decisively, while Republicans who invested millions in anti-trans fearmongering were rejected by voters.

This contrasts sharply with the messaging coming out of the White House.

The Trump-Vance administration has pursued a hardline anti-trans agenda since taking office, from attempting to ban trans military members from serving to enforcing bathroom and sports bans. But this winning strategy may not be as solid for their voters as it once seemed.

The Washington Blade attended a post-election meeting hosted by the Human Rights Campaign, where LGBTQ advocates and political leaders reflected on the results and discussed how to build on the momentum heading into 2026 — as the Trump-Vance administration doubles down on its anti-trans agenda.

Among those on the call was U.S. Rep. Sarah McBride (D-Del.), the first openly trans person ever elected to Congress. Having run one of the nation’s most visible pro-trans campaigns, McBride said voters made their priorities clear.

“Voters made clear yesterday that they will reject campaigns built on hatred. They will reject campaigns that seek to divide us, and they will reject candidates that offer no solutions for the cost-of-living crisis this country is facing.”

McBride cited the Virginia governor’s race as a clear example of how a candidate can uplift trans people — specifically when their opponent is targeting kids — but also refocus the conversation on topics Americans truly care about: the economy, tariffs, mortgage rates, and the preservation of democracy.

“We saw millions of dollars in anti-trans attacks in Virginia, but we saw Governor-elect Spanberger respond. She defended her trans constituents, met voters with respect and grace, and ran a campaign that opened hearts and changed minds,” McBride said.

“That is the future of our politics. That is how we win — by combating misinformation, caricatures, fearmongering, and scapegoating.”

She added that the elections in Virginia, New Jersey, and New York offer a “blueprint” for how Democrats can effectively respond to GOP attacks and win “in the face of hatred.”

“When you dive into the data and you look in New Jersey, Virginia — you see the progress that pro-equality candidates have made in urban, suburban, and rural communities, among voters of every background and identity,” McBride said. “You see that we can compete everywhere … When we perform a politics that’s rooted in three concepts, we win.

“One is a politics of affordability — we prioritize the issues keeping voters up at night, the cost-of-living crisis. Two, we are curious, not judgmental — as candidates, we meet people where they are, hold true to our values, but extend grace so people can grow. And three, we root our politics in a sense of place.”

“All of these candidates were deeply committed to their districts, to their state, to their city,” she continued. “Voters responded because they were able to see a politics that transcended partisanship and ideology … about building community with one another, across our disagreements and our differences. When we as pro-equality candidates embody that type of politics — a politics of affordability, curiosity, and community — we win.”

Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson echoed McBride’s sentiment — once again moving away from the bogeyman Republicans have made trans children out to be and refocusing on politics that matter to people’s everyday lives.

“Anti-trans extremists poured millions into fearmongering, hoping cruelty could substitute for leadership — and once again, it failed,” Robinson said. “Fear can’t fill a prescription. Division doesn’t lower rent or put food on the table. Voters saw through the distraction.”

Robinson then detailed how much money Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, the Republican who challenged Spanberger, spent on these ads — showing that even with money and a PAC standing behind her (like the Republican Governors Association’s Right Direction PAC, which gave her $9.5 million), success isn’t possible without a message that connects with constituents.

“In Virginia, Abigail Spanberger made history defeating Winsome Earle-Sears and more than $9 million of anti-trans attack ads. She didn’t flinch. She didn’t hide from her values. She led with them — and Virginians rewarded that courage.”

Equality Virginia Executive Director Narissa Rahaman went into further detail on how the Republican nominee for Virginia’s governor leaned into transphobia.

“Winsome Earle-Sears spent more than 60 percent of her paid media budget attacking transgender kids — an unprecedented amount — and it failed.”

Rahaman continued, saying the results send a message to the whole country, noting that only 3 percent of voters ranked trans issues as a top concern by the end of October.

“Virginia voters sent a resounding message that anti-trans fearmongering is not a winning strategy — not here in Virginia, and not anywhere else,” Rahaman said. “Candidates who met these attacks head-on with messages rooted in freedom, safety, and fairness saw overwhelming success. Attacking transgender youth is not a path to power. It is a moral dead end — and a political one too.”

Virginia state Del. Joshua Cole (D-Fredericksburg), who was also on the call, put it bluntly:

“Republicans have now become champions of campaigning on bullying kids — and we saw last night that that was a losing tactic.”

“Virginians came out en masse to say we believe in protecting our neighbors, protecting our friends — and standing up for everybody.”

That message rang true well beyond Virginia.

In New Jersey, Rep. Mikie Sherrill pushed back against GOP efforts to weaponize trans issues, telling voters, “When you really talk to people, they have empathy. They understand these are kids, these are families, and they deserve our support.”

And in New York, state Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani released a pre-election ad honoring trans liberation icon Sylvia Rivera, declaring, “New York will not sit idly by while trans people are attacked.”