This blog is originally appeared at LGBTQ Nation.
As a lesbian governor who took on the Trump administration nearly 100 times in court, Maura Healey understands that now is not the time to step away from the fight.
The Alabama Supreme Court’s decision granting embryos the same legal rights as children has sent a jolt through the LGBTQ+ community, threatening access to IVF and jeopardizing the future of queer family-building. LGBTQ+ couples, who often rely on fertility treatments like IVF to grow their families, already navigate steep financial, legal, and social obstacles. Now, with the GOP’s escalating opposition to LGBTQ+ and reproductive rights, hostility toward queer families is intensifying.
Still, the LGBTQ+ community remains resilient. Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey, an openly gay leader, offers a clear response: “Vote them out of office, and vote people who will stand with us and protect us into office.”
“I meet so many people who are using surrogacy, IVF, and other forms of assisted reproduction because of the rights and freedoms they enjoy under Massachusetts law,” Healey shared with LGBTQ Nation. “I’m proud of who I am, of the work I do every day, and of the freedoms we get to stand up for. We advance policies that foster inclusivity and protect our community, and people should take pride in that and not let the bullies and haters defeat our spirit.”
Healey’s administration is the embodiment of support and protection for LGBTQ+ rights.
Since becoming one of the country’s first out lesbian governors, Healey has led with purpose. In her first year and a half, she signed a landmark parentage act to secure legal protections for LGBTQ+ families, passed legislation ensuring IVF coverage for LGBTQ+ veterans, enacted a critical maternal health bill, issued an executive order to protect emergency abortion care, and increased funding to support LGBTQ+-owned businesses.
In addition, Healey has been a strong ally on the campaign trail for Vice President Kamala Harris, actively participating in the Democratic National Convention, speaking at Zoom rallies, and joining forces with other governors in the push for inclusive, forward-thinking leadership.
“People who believe in and want to protect civil rights and freedoms need to go vote,” Healey urged. “And they need to go vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz.”
Healey praised Vice President Harris and Governor Tim Walz as unwavering advocates for women’s rights and personal freedom. “They are champions of women and the freedom that women should have to make decisions for themselves,” she said. Healey also highlighted their dedication to LGBTQ+ rights, noting Harris’ longstanding commitment to equality and support for the LGBTQ+ community.
Healey and Harris served concurrently as attorneys general in their respective states. While Healey was actively suing then-President Donald Trump’s administration nearly 100 times, she noted that Harris was equally committed to advocating for LGBTQ+ rights.
She commended Harris for establishing a hate crimes unit dedicated to investigating anti-LGBTQ+ violence and for her efforts to eliminate the gay and trans panic defense in California. “She famously refused to defend Prop 8, which sought to outlaw same-sex marriage in the state,” Healey remarked. “Later, as a senator, she co-sponsored the Equality Act, defended the Affordable Care Act, and as vice president, she’s helped Joe Biden lead probably the most pro-equality administration in history.”
When asked about her concerns regarding a potential second term for Donald Trump, particularly in relation to bodily autonomy and family rights, Healey didn’t hesitate: “Everything.”
“It’s really, really scary,” she continued. “Trump probably led the most anti-LGBTQ administration in American history, stripping away freedoms and protections—banning transgender people from serving in the military, arguing in court that businesses should be allowed to refuse service to LGBTQ individuals, and eliminating medically necessary care for young people. Based on Project 2025 and his own statements, we know it will be even worse. They want to go after marriage equality, implement a national abortion ban, and restrict access to contraception.”
She expressed profound concern for the mental health of LGBTQ+ youth as lawmakers across the country propose hundreds of bills aimed at rolling back their rights and, in some cases, eliminating their right to exist altogether.
According to the Trevor Project, LGBTQ+ youth are over four times more likely to attempt suicide than their peers, and in the organization’s 2024 national mental health survey, 90% of LGBTQ+ young people reported that their well-being has been negatively affected by recent political developments.
“Rates of suicide are up,” Healey said. “And since Trump overturned Roe—let’s be clear, he did overturn Roe… he followed through on that—now one in three women in America lives in a state with an abortion ban. These are very real threats we face.”
The Trump campaign has consistently sought to distance itself from the alarming vision outlined in the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025, which presents a chilling forecast for a potential second Trump term. However, Healey emphasizes Trump’s connections to this project, cautioning the public: “Don’t believe anything that Donald Trump says” because he’ll “say anything and everything depending on where the wind is blowing.”
Yet, Healey firmly trusts Trump to execute his party’s threats against the American people. Just as he dismantled Roe v. Wade, she warns that he is fully capable of realizing the goals outlined in Project 2025, which calls for the complete elimination of LGBTQ+ rights and explicitly states that “only heterosexual, two-parent families are safe for children.”
“These are promises he will fulfill,” Healey warned, drawing from her experience as a stepmother to two children. “It’s a very dangerous time right now.”
Trump and Project 2025 would undoubtedly disrupt the lives of LGBTQ+ families, but Healey highlights significant economic implications that would make their policies catastrophic.
“There’s a reason Massachusetts is ranked number one for our schools, for healthcare, and as the best place to have a baby and live if you’re a woman,” Healey stated. “Part of that is because we’re a state that has long protected civil rights and freedoms. I believe this is a critical piece of our economic competitiveness. We want colleges, universities, and businesses to have the opportunity to attract the very best talent to Massachusetts.”
“We want people to come, succeed, and thrive here—to grow families, build businesses, and develop careers. One of the ways we achieve this is by being a state that, through both government policy and the actions of our businesses and corporate stakeholders, emphasizes respect for and support of civil rights and freedoms.”
Reflecting on her time as the chief of civil rights in the attorney general’s office, Healey recounted her successful challenge against the Defense of Marriage Act, which helped lay the groundwork for nationwide marriage equality. “One of the briefs we prepared for the First Circuit, and later for the Supreme Court, was an amicus brief signed by businesses in support of equality,” she explained. “They understood the economic imperative: companies perform better when there’s greater representation on their boards and in their C-suites. This has been proven. Promoting an inclusive and open environment leads to better policies, ideas, results, and outcomes.”
Healey highlighted the importance of her state’s diverse elected officials as a key factor in the progress made to protect the rights of marginalized communities. As the nation’s first out lesbian governor, alongside Oregon Governor Tina Kotek, she and Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll represent the country’s first all-woman governor/lieutenant governor team.
“I know that we’ll achieve better policies and outcomes—most importantly, for people—when we have more representation,” she stated.
However, Healey is quick to emphasize that increased government representation is just part of the equation. “We owe so much to families and advocates who have bravely shared their stories over the years,” she said. “These community members, with lived experiences, have gone to the state legislature, testified in hearings, and spoken to the media. They truly deserve the credit.”
She urged LGBTQ+ families to continue to “speak out and speak up against the lies” and the “vile misinformation” that is often spread, particularly by figures like Trump and Vance.
“If you look at the arc of history in this realm, you can see the progress made for our community. Let’s build on that. Let’s draw upon that during what I acknowledge is a really challenging time. But people need to stand together and vote for equality leaders like Kamala Harris and Tim Walz.”
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