Jumping The Gap: Green Transphobia & Where It Leads / John Halstead
Writer John Halstead returns to the podcast to discuss his widely read article, Jumping the Gap: Where Green Transphobia Leads, published at A Beautiful Resistance.
John Halstead’s article uses the ideological trajectory of Paul Kingnorth, co-founder of the Dark Mountain Project and a fierce critic of “Big Green environmentalism,” to examine trans-exclusionary politics and rhetoric in certain leftist ecoactivist movements and spaces. John has remarked Kingsnorth was an “intellectual idol” of his, helping him form many of his own ideas about humanity’s severed relationship with the earth, with poignant ruminations on the roots of anthropogenic climate change, the dead end of techno-optimism, and industrial civilization’s inevitable collapse. But, as Halstead began to more closely examine Kingnorth’s writings since the onset of the pandemic in 2020, he, like many others who admired his perspective, was disturbed by his “benevolent green nationalism,” defense of the British monarchy, and openly derisive characterizations of “wokeness” and trans identity.
Transphobia is not new in green and anti-civ discourse, with one of the most longstanding and persistent examples being the stated positions of Deep Green Resistance and it founders. Citing this and an essay written by Kingsnorth in 2022 as potent examples, Halstead picks apart the tropes used to dismiss and deride acceptance of trans people and identity as delusional, deviant, “unnatural," “ideological," and a nefarious and insidious “agenda" that wishes to undermine the safety and wellbeing of children. Logical fallacies and ethical issues abound in Kingnorth’s essay in particular, as John illustrates.
Considering the political moment we are in, especially in the United States, as Republican held state legislatures around the country pass and enact openly anti-LGBTQ+ laws that directly target and prohibit trans people's existence, speaking up against pernicious transphobic rhetoric is as crucial as it's ever been. As the living systems of the planet buckle under the demands of industrial capitalism's final phase, a full-throated fascism coheres around culture war anxieties and proposes genocidal solutions. Anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric and legislation is part of this trajectory. As John stated to me, how we collapse is of utmost importance in this time, not by dehumanizing people we may not fully understand, but by embracing people's full humanity, building community, and dismantling oppressive hierarchies.
Bio:
John Halstead is the author of Another End of the World is Possible, in which he explores what it would really mean for our relationship with the natural world if we were to admit that we are doomed. John is a native of the southern Laurentian bioregion and lives in Northwest Indiana, near Chicago. He is a co-founder of 350 Indiana-Calumet, which worked to organize resistance to the fossil fuel industry in the Region. John was the principal facilitator of “A Pagan Community Statement on the Environment.” He strives to live up to the challenge posed by the Statement through his writing and activism. John has written for numerous online platforms, including Patheos, Huffington Post, and Gods & Radicals. He is Editor-at-Large of Naturalistic Paganism. John also edited the anthology, Godless Paganism: Voices of Non-Theistic Pagans and authored Neo-Paganism: Historical Inspiration & Contemporary Creativity. He is also a Shaper of the Earthseed community, more about which can be found at GodisChange.org.
Episode Notes:
Read Jumping the Gap: Where Green Transphobia Leads.
The song featured is “Deneb” by Nick Vander from the album Kodama (Nowaki’s Selection), used with permission by the artist.
