March 3, 2026
It was said in a hagiographic piece about a prominent libertarian who died last year that the two issues that were closest to his heart were the war on drugs and gay rights. And not just gay rights, but trans rights.
Now, as I have written about over a hundred times, the war on drugs is a monstrous evil that has ruined more lives than drugs themselves. The war on drugs-any drugs and all drugs-is incompatible in every way with a libertarian society; that is, a free society. Ending the war on drugs should be a high priority for every libertarian no matter how much he may be personally against the medical or recreational use of drugs.
But what about trans rights ? Should that be in the same category as ending the war on drugs ? Should libertarians aspire to be remembered after their death as advocates for something so ambiguous that it can mean almost anything?
I wrote about libertarianism and trans rights about 5 years ago. I stated then, and second now what I stated then, that 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.
They do not have the right to be accepted, liked, or praised. They do not have the right to not be ridiculed, joked about, or discriminated against. And neither are they entitled to special rights. This is because no one-straight or LGBTQIA2+ABCXYZ-is entitled to these rights.
I think it is time to revisit the subject of libertarianism and trans rights.
What does trans rights even mean?
To some it means trans people being able to change their birth certificates and passports. To others it means trans people being able to use the restroom and locker room of their choice.
To some it means taxpayer-funded "gender affirming" care. To others it means requiring insurance companies to cover such care.
To some it means trans people being able to compete on the gender sports team of their choice. To others it means trans prisoners being able to be incarcerated in the gender prison of their choice.
To some it means that only trans individuals should be allow to play transsexuals in movies and television shows. To others it means that more trans characters should appear in movies and television shows.
To some it means trans people being able to service in the military. To others it means trans people receiving "gender affirming" care in the military.
To some it means requiring people to refer to trans individuals by a particular pronoun. To others it means adding sexual orientation and gender identity to the list in the Civil Rights Act.
To some it means the right of minors to have puberty blockers, hormones of the opposite sex, and surgery to address their "gender dysphoria." To others it means the right of minors to these things without the permission of their parents.
A coalition of House Democrats are supporting a resolution called the "Trans Bill of Rights." It includes a host of government actions to expand trans access to public "services" and "accommodations," including "the full range of places and services that members of the general public utilize."
For a libertarian to oppose special privileges for trans individuals does not mean that he is joining the right-wing social and cultural wars. For a libertarian to view "gender affirming" care for minors as dangerous, a mental health issue, and child abuse does not mean that he is moving away from a principled commitment to libertarianism.
Yes, people have the right to do with their bodies as they choose-as long as they are the ones paying for it. Yes, the government should leave people alone to be who they are, do as they please, and love whom they wish to love-as long as they don't demand special rights and privileges. And yes, people have the right to be free from aggression against them because they are "different"- as long as they don't violate the personal or property rights of others.
These are not trans rights; they are human rights.
Because no one can say he is for trans rights without a whole lot of caveats, it is not wise for libertarians to use such a term.