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Sabrina Jennen鈥檚 family has deep roots in Arkansas, but she said moving to Maryland three years ago brought them a sense of safety they didn鈥檛 have in the Natural State.

The Jennens were one of  who sued Arkansas in 2021 over its law banning gender-affirming healthcare, such as hormone replacement therapy, for transgender youth like Sabrina, now 20.

Both  and , where Sabrina attends college, have shield laws protecting gender-affirming healthcare. She and her family have also found that states with more accepting LGBTQ+ policies have stronger foundations in other areas, such as education.

鈥淲hen I talk about my home state of Arkansas with my peers, I really hype up the natural geography, but I make sure to disparage the politics because it truly is a limiting factor, not only for people like me, but also just normal Arkansans,鈥� Sabrina said in an interview.

The Jennens鈥� choice to leave Arkansas wasn鈥檛 unique. The growing number of Republican-led states imposing restrictions on transgender youth 鈥� and sometimes adults 鈥� on matters ranging from pronouns to medical decisions have forced families to make difficult choices. Some are choosing to stay, but many have looked to other states.

State and national trends

Nearly half of transgender adults in the United States have moved or considered moving from states with laws targeting them to states with safer legal and social environments, according to a  last year from the Williams Institute, a research center on gender identity and sexual orientation at the UCLA College of Law.

鈥淔or those transgender people who do pursue relocating, service providers, businesses, and state and local governments should both consider the costs of losing members of their communities and support and welcome those who are making new homes,鈥� the Williams Institute states.

A federal judge  Arkansas鈥� ban on transgender minors鈥� healthcare in 2023, around the same time the Jennens moved. Another family that challenged the law, the Dennises, also  where Brooke Dennis, 14, faces no legal barriers to her healthcare.

The U.S. Supreme Court聽聽Tennessee鈥檚 similar ban last year, and an appeals court responded by allowing Arkansas鈥� ban聽. The federal government has since聽 from providing transgender minors鈥� healthcare as a condition of participating in Medicare and Medicaid programs.聽

The bans on gender-affirming care have been opposed by most major medical organizations, including the . 

Healthcare for transgender adults has also become more difficult to access thanks to sweeping federal orders.

However, some transgender Arkansans prefer to stay or don鈥檛 have the means to leave the state.

Yara Sandefur and one of her four children are transgender. Leaving isn鈥檛 financially feasible for their family, but staying can be frustrating due to Arkansas鈥� conservative leadership and the professional obstacles that arose for Sandefur after she came out, she said.

鈥淚 just want to be able to breathe like normal folk,鈥� she said.

鈥楾he fight is here鈥�

Tien Estell grew up in Arkansas and works for the state鈥檚 only transgender-owned community center, Intransitive. Estell鈥檚 work includes helping LGBTQ+ people obtain health insurance.

Estell鈥檚 work and their family, both biological and chosen, would be difficult to replicate in another state, they said.

鈥淢y heart is with my people, and the fight is here,鈥� Estell said. 鈥淭he fight is in the South.鈥�

That fight comes forth in elected officials鈥� statements in addition to the legislation they approve. Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders declared June in Arkansas 鈥�.鈥� Other Republican-led states such as  and  made similar declarations as a counter to LGBTQ+ Pride Month.

Additionally, President Donald Trump鈥檚 administration released  in May that calls for 鈥渢he rapid identification and neutralization of violent secular political groups,鈥� including those considered 鈥渞adically pro-transgender.鈥�

鈥淲hat does it look like to move from one pocket of hatred, one pocket of erasure, to move somewhere else in this country where we still have a president who thinks I鈥檓 a terrorist?鈥� Estell said.

鈥楥ontinuity of care鈥�

Arkansas 鈥渉as always felt like home鈥� to Marie Mainard O鈥機onnell, a Presbyterian pastor and mother of three, including a transgender 18-year-old who attends college in-state. When lawmakers propose bills targeting LGBTQ+ people, O鈥機onnell routinely speaks against them.

鈥淎s I see the Legislature dog-whistling to try and distract from the real issues that are facing Arkansans, it seems all the more important to stand up for our humanity,鈥� O鈥機onnell said.

She is a founding member of the Central Arkansas Queer Collective, which provides support and social events for LGBTQ+ people and families. O鈥機onnell said her own family considers Arkansas worth staying and fighting for, but it鈥檚 been 鈥減ainful to lose good people to other places, simply because they need something Arkansas won鈥檛 give them.鈥�

Shea McGinnis is among those people. His transgender 11-year-old was receiving gender-affirming healthcare in Oregon for over a year before the family moved there in May.

鈥淲e had the opportunity to keep that continuity of care for our kid and go to a place where we knew we would be protected and safe and be able to thrive,鈥� McGinnis said.

He also said he has more peace of mind about his own healthcare, since the Trump administration  discouraging gender-affirming care for trans adults. Arkansas is  with a law allowing private insurers to refuse to cover gender-affirming care.

When Arkansas became the first Southern state to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act in 2013, Estell was part of a team assisting LGBTQ+ people with enrollment. Over a decade later, Estell is among many Americans whose insurance premiums spiked this year because Congress did not extend  by the end of 2025.

鈥淢oving to another state doesn鈥檛 solve my lack of access to healthcare,鈥� Estell said.

鈥楳oving parts鈥�

Whether to stay in Arkansas or leave is a decision with 鈥渁 lot of moving parts鈥� for O鈥機onnell鈥檚 family, and the most important thing for them at the moment is to stay with the people they love in their home state, she said.

鈥淩ight now, staying with our friends, family, loved ones and community is outweighing the other variables, and I recognize that that鈥檚 going to be different for every family,鈥� O鈥機onnell said.

Dozens of Arkansans 鈥� including O鈥機onnell, McGinnis, and Sabrina鈥檚 father, Aaron Jennen 鈥� pressured lawmakers into  a 2023 proposal that would have criminalized adults entering a restroom that doesn鈥檛 match their gender assigned at birth. The state passed a law  last year, drawing more public frustration. O鈥機onnell told lawmakers it was 鈥渘ot good for our community, and it鈥檚 not good Christian values.鈥�

What gives O鈥機onnell hope for LGBTQ+ people鈥檚 future in Arkansas, she said, is her belief 鈥渋n the resilience of human nature.鈥�

鈥淧eople, and Arkansans in particular, are fundamentally kind and want to be kind to each other,鈥� she said.

Sandefur said she and her family lost some of their support system when she came out, but what remains of that system is in Arkansas.

鈥淚t鈥檚 my state too, and it鈥檚 my home too, and I should feel welcome here,鈥� she said. 鈥淧art of me wants to stay and fight and part of me wants to flee, so I鈥檓 caught in the middle, but right now, it makes sense to stay and hope for the best.鈥�

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Arkansas Advocate maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Andrew DeMillo for questions: [email protected].

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