The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank and the architects of Project 2025 – a collection of policy ideas aimed at consolidating executive power in favor of right-wing policies – has, as of September 2025, urged the FBI to add a new designation to its list of domestic violent extremist groups.
The proposed label targets trans people and their allies as extremists under the term “Transgender Ideology-Inspired Violent Extremism.”
This is one of many in a series of attempts by right-wing organizations to restrict the rights of trans and gender queer people. Washington House Bill 1038, introduced in January 2025 to the Washington Legislature, would prohibit puberty blocking medications, cross-sex hormones and gender transition surgeries for minors.
With an increasingly tense political climate for trans and gender queer students, the on-campus feelings of community and safety at Western Washington University have become mixed.
“What they’re doing is incredibly nerve-wracking,” said Rose Kingrey, a junior and studio arts major at Western, describing her feelings on policies the Trump administration has been pushing for regarding restricting care for trans youth and the continued attacks on trans people.
Prominent examples include Executive Order 14187, titled, Protecting Children From Chemical and Surgical Mutilation, which aimed to enforce laws that “limit or prohibit these destructive and life-altering procedures” for people under the age of 19.
Leven Gehlhausen, also known by their stage name, Jesper Stone, is a Bellingham drag artist and an educational theater major at Western. They are also co-president of the university’s Royal Gambit Drag Club.
Gehlhausen believes the Trump administration has impacted their sense of safety, both on and off campus. “People have become bolder with their opinions … making people feel unsafe, and making most uncomfortable.”
Gelhausen expressed their surprise at encountering people, both on and off campus, whom they had believed held progressive views but have begun to express more conservative viewpoints. They noted a shift in spaces where these individuals were present, going from a comfortable and accepting space to an uncomfortable one.
In the three years that Kingrey has attended Western, she has also noticed an increase in antagonistic groups on campus: referencing Tiny Heartbeat Ministries, a group of anti-abortion protesters who, on Oct. 1, 2025, held a rally in Red Square for the assassinated conservative influencer Charlie Kirk.
On Feb. 5, 2025, Trump signed Executive Order 14201, titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” which sought to ban trans women from competing in women's sports. The next day, the U.S. Department of Education opened an investigation into the University of Pennsylvania’s inclusion of a trans athlete in its women's swimming program in 2022.
The investigation led to the defunding of the University of Pennsylvania, with the federal government suspending $175 million in federal funding.
Both Gelhausen and Kingrey see Western Washington University as a safer space for openly queer people compared to spaces off campus — especially students who are openly nonbinary or transgender. Displays of queerness are front and center at prominent school-organized festivals like West Fest, where drag performers have opened for headlining acts.
JoeHahn is the director of LGBTQ+ Western and serves as the interim director for the Office of Multicultural Student Services. JoeHahn highlighted the extensive existing policy at Western that is designed to protect LGBTQ+ people on campus.
Because of the strength and breadth of these existing policies, there is no current discussion about implementing additional campus safety measures within the administration.
He would later add that LGBTQ+ Western is still gathering information and perspectives on campus policy. This includes updates to the Lived Name Policy, which aims to allow students, staff, and faculty to use a lived or preferred full name instead of their legal name for most university purposes, including class rosters, unofficial transcripts and email display names.
Kingrey praised the accessibility of student services available to her. “I actually started estrogen at the WWU Health Center. They helped a lot, and they were very quick and very kind people.”
While unfamiliar with the changes to the Lived Name Policy, Kingrey stated she was grateful that the policy existed and could offer students support.
These updates to the Lived Name Policy include implementing the policy across all campus software platforms and allowing students and staff to update their full names, rather than only their first names.
While Gelhausen had not personally used any of the services available to them as a student, they stated members of the Royal Gambit Drag Club had opened up about positive experiences they had with counselors at the Counseling and Wellness Center and their sensitivity towards LGBTQ+ patients.
“The Viking Union is always where we are the loudest. I can always go in there … and I know there will be a queer person within 50 feet,” Gelhausen joked.
For them, the Viking Union is a space where they feel particularly safe and connected with other queer people on campus. “We can go to the queer lounge at LGBTQ+ Western and hang out there. We always know we have a safe space.”
Despite rising tensions off campus and a shifting political climate, students like Kingrey and Gelhausen point to Western as a space where support for queer and trans students remains visible and impactful.
While national rhetoric grows increasingly hostile, many on campus feel bolstered by the institutional efforts to protect queer students and maintain inclusive spaces.
Recognizing the broader political landscape, JoeHahn emphasized the university’s commitment to its students.
“I know that our institution, along with our Attorney General’s Office, will be seeking ways to make sure that (government restrictions are) minimized as much as possible … we are still going to continue doing the work we do of providing inclusive and accessible services.”
Brodey O’Brien (he/him) is a junior at Western, majoring in News/Editorial Journalism and Political Science. Brodey is one of The Front reporters responsible for writing about Campus News. When not writing for The Front, Brodey can be found running around Bellingham, hiking Mt Baker and saving up for gas. You can reach him at brodeyjob.thefront@gmail.com
