I have seen a noticeable increase in the use of the term “trans rights” this year. How libertarianism relates to the rights of transsexuals is something that I want to briefly explore.
By libertarianism I don’t mean the simplistic and erroneous “fiscally conservative and culturally liberal.”
By libertarianism I mean libertarianism. Not thin, thick, brutalist, humanitarian, moralist, consequentialist, modal, conservative, socialist, cosmopolitan, cultural, theocratic, neo, bleeding heart, consequentialist, deontological, second wave, millennial, anarchist, minarchist, or sophisticated—just plain old plumb line libertarianism.
Libertarianism is the philosophy that says that people should be free from individual, societal, or government interference to live their lives any way they desire, pursue their own happiness, accumulate wealth, assess their own risks, make their own choices, participate in any economic activity for their profit, engage in commerce with anyone who is willing to reciprocate, and spend the fruits of their labor as they see fit. As long as people don’t violate the personal or property rights of others, and as long as their actions are peaceful, their associations are voluntary, and their interactions are consensual, they should be free to live their lives without license, regulation, interference, or molestation by the government.
Therefore, according to libertarianism, trans individuals have two fundamental rights.
One, because everyone owns his own body, he should be free to think whatever he wants to think and do to his body whatever he wants to do. Consequently, trans individuals have the right to think they belong to the opposite sex, wear clothing of the opposite sex, inject whatever hormones or drugs they want into their bodies, have parts of their body surgically removed, and alter their bodies as they see fit.
And two, because the libertarian non-aggression principle applies to everyone and every situation, trans individuals have the right to be free from harassment, hostility, molestation, oppression, violence, brutality, assault, and murder.
That’s it.
So, to trans individuals, libertarianism says—
You have no right to be accepted.
You have no right to read books to children in public libraries.
You have no right to be liked.
You have no right to use locker rooms of the opposite sex.
You have no right to not be ridiculed.
You have no right to have a third gender on your passport.
You have no right to change the gender on your birth certificate.
You have no right to not be made fun of.
You have no right to compel people to call you or not call you by specific pronouns.
You have no right to be protected from discrimination.
You have no right to not be the butt of jokes.
You have no right to a job.
You have no right to use restrooms of the opposite sex.
You have no right to be served in a restaurant or store.
You have no right to have sexual orientation and gender identity added to the Civil Rights Act.
You have no right to taxpayer dollars to pay for hormone treatments or body alterations.
You have no right to play on sports teams of the opposite sex.
You have no right to enter a single-sex competition if you are of the opposite sex.
You have no right to exclusively play trans individuals in movies and on television shows.
You have no right to be incarcerated in a jail or prison for the opposite sex.
You have no right for health insurance companies to cover sex change operations.
You have no right to force anyone to accept that gender dysphoria is a medical disorder instead of a mental disorder.
Why shouldn’t trans people have these rights? Because no one should have these rights. Everyone should have basic human rights. There should be no special trans rights, gay rights, women’s rights, minority rights, etc.
