Have You Taken The Trans Survey Yet?

The new trans survey is out and it is closing on November 21st.

What this transgender survey can tell us that other population studies are missing
NorthJersey.com
By Sammy Gibbons
November 10, 2022


Every 10 years, Americans fill out census surveys identifying our age, race, hometown and other demographic traits to help determine areas in need of financial and social support. But those questionnaires have yet to dig into experiences and needs of LGBTQ people.

The U.S. Transgender Survey asks extensive questions about lived experiences of transgender, nonbinary and other gender-diverse people. It's one of few sources that collects data about these communities, and it's returned for the third round of responses after a seven year gap.

The National Center for Transgender Equality, along with several partners, launched the 2022 survey in October. Responses collected in 2015 created what’s considered the largest, most effective dataset about transgender people and is cited almost daily, according to U.S. Trans Survey and Special Projects Director Josie Caballero.  

“When we leave communities uncounted, it makes it easier for people to spread the myth that trans people don’t exist,” said Caballero. “It is so critical to make sure that those stories are quantitatively collected in a dataset so we can report these lived experiences and social outcomes.”

When we were first working to pass the Connecticut trans non-discrimination law in 2007 we were constantly asked how many trans people are there is the state and we didn’t have the answer. But in 2009 the first trans survey came out and we had answers! 

The survey was by the National Center for Transgender Equality and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and we begged and pleaded for a copy of it and we got a copy with in bright red letters… “Preliminary Findings • November 2009”! In 2011 when we once again introduced a non-discrimination bill we could answer the legislators’ questions.

The team behind the survey includes entirely transgender people.

Beyond being the largest dataset focused on transgender people, the community-led survey stands apart because transgender people built it for transgender people.

"This is serving us," Caballero said.

My only comment was there were only basic questions about elder trans people, about long term care facilities, nursing homes, and none about senior centers. I will be bugging them to be inclusive of trans elders in the next survey.

Caballero expects data will publish by the end of 2023. The next U.S. Transgender Survey will accept questions in five years. Respondents should be 16 or older and identify as transgender, nonbinary or an identity other than cisgender. The survey can be taken at ustranssurvey.org by Nov. 21.

Take the survey, it is important especially in today’s political environment. And if you are an elder like me and you find it lacking in coverage of us there is a “Contact Us” at the end of the survey.