New research proves something many of us already knew: people who actually know trans people are much more likely to be trans allies. Bigotry thrives in ignorance: as I point out in my book, a survey of Fox News viewers found that they were much more likely to say they have seen a ghost than ever met a trans person, which makes it easy for people to tell lies about us.

The findings are here.

In a survey of 3,695 adults aged 18 to 25, 74% of those who described themselves as “not supportive” of trans people said they do not know anyone who is transgender. 

Of those who do not know any transgender people, just 33% described themselves as “very supportive” of trans people. However, this is compared to 64% of people who do know a trans person, whether they are close to them or not. 

Just 3% of people who know a trans person said they are “not supportive”.