Trans Men in Gay Nudist Clubs? Hell Yes!

Sadly, trans people face irrational discrimination, even within the LGBTQ+ community.

In various gay men's clubs across the USA, trans men have been getting discriminated against, and the offending groups are rightly getting the backlash they deserve from the broader LGBTQ+ community and others. Take, for example, Grizzly Pines, a clothing optional campground in Texas for gay men that bans trans men. The camp has been getting hit hard, and rightly so, for their policy. Other queer groups are publicly severing ties with them, canceling events (including ones that were sold out) and complaining about them on social media. The story has been covered in the mainstream press as well as queer media like Pink News and the Advocate.

To-date, no one has offered anything resembling a reasonable argument in support of the group, purportedly formed as a response to discrimination, which then goes off to engage in the same sort of discrimination against others. Even the founders of Grizzly Pines have been unable to muster anything like an explanation, even as they have continued to double-down on their own hypocrisy.

As tragic as the story is, it should be pointed out that Grizzly Pines is not a unique case, because LGBTQ+ people are not immune from being driven by the same irrational fears and prejudice towards the trans community that cause other people to discriminate against the LGBTQ+ community at large. The biggest difference is that, as members of an oppressed group, many people believe gay men's groups should be more careful to avoid oppressing others.

At Naked Vermont, we stand with our trans brothers and sisters and condemn senseless policies that exclude or harm them.