Alejandra Caraballo and transgender people

Alejandra Caraballo is an American civil rights attorney and legal scholar. Caraballo has written a number of important works related to transgender legal rights and reproductive rights.

Background

Alejandra Louisa Caraballo was born in December, 1990. Caraballo’s parent lost an arm in a workplace accident, and Caraballo became interested in law as a teenager after witnessing the legal challenges of navigating worker’s compensation.

Caraballo earned a bachelor’s degree from University of Tampa in 2012. While there, Caraballo was a columnist for student paper The Minaret. After working for Simplifi in 2013, Caraballo earned a law degree from Brooklyn Law School in 2016, externing at the Safe Harbor Clinic and Elder Law Cllinic while there. Caraballo came out as transgender after being admitted to the New York Bar in 2017.

From 2016 to 2019, Caraballo was a staff attorney at New York Legal Assistance Group, then served as a staff attorney at Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund from 2019 to 2021.

In 2020 Caraballo announced a run for New York City’s 35th district City Council seat, but dropped out prior to the election.

Caraballo was appointed as a clinical instructor at the Cyberlaw Clinic at Harvard Law School in 2021 and earned a master’s degree from the Harvard Kennedy School in 2025.

According to a biography submitted to Congress:

Alejandra’s professional focus has been on advancing the civil rights of LGBTQ people in a variety of civil legal contexts such as healthcare access, immigration, and family law. […] Alejandra previously served as the Secretary of the LGBTQ Rights Committee of the New York City Bar Association and was appointed as the first openly trans community board member in Brooklyn. Alejandra’s areas of interests include the intersection of gender and technology.

Caraballo uses the online handle “esqueer” and variants.

Advocacy and activism

From 2019 to 2023, Caraballo served on the board of Translatina Network. From 2022 to 2023, Caraballo served on the board for Fenway Health.

In 2022, Caraballo published an academic paper on “the anti-transgender medical expert industry.” Caraballo names several key figures and describes how they operate. Anti-trans philosopher Moti Gorin sent a letter to the editor complaining about Caraballo’s paper.

Caraballo is a prominent social media poster. In 2022, Caraballo gave testimony to Congress about “confronting white supremacy.” At the testimony, anti-trans lawmaker Nancy Mace confronted Caraballo about some inflammatory social media posts Caraballo had made.

Caraballo has been a prominent critic of anti-trans journalists like Jesse Singal. On April 14, 2023, Caraballo revealed that anti-trans journalist Benjamin Ryan was working on a story attacking gender-affirming care for youth, writing:

“The New York Times and Benjamin Ryan are writing another transphobic hit piece looking for providers who “have misgivings about gender affirming care.” Providers and advocates should ignore any outreach or requests for comment from Ryan as he is another Jesse Singal.”

In 2024, Caraballo was suspended from X for revealing the name of the author of the anti-trans comic Stonetoss. Caraballo’s account was later reinstated. Caraballo then began posting primarily on Bluesky, quickly becoming a top trans account on the platform.

In 2025, Caraballo started publishing the newsletter The Dissident.

References

Fraizer, Emmet (March 20, 2025). Our Trans Protections Aren’t Strong Enough for the Trump Era. The Nation https://www.thenation.com/article/society/trans-shield-laws-trump/

Sprayregen, Molly (January 17, 2025). Alejandra Caraballo explains Donald Trump’s “fundamental miscalculation.” LGBTQ Nation https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2025/01/alejandra-caraballo-explains-donald-trumps-fundamental-miscalculation/

Kaufman, Kate J. (November 16, 2024). For Alejandra Caraballo, the Next 4 Years Are About Survival. Harvard Crimson https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2024/11/16/alejandra-caraballo-profile/

Kemp, Audrey (November 6, 2024). What Trump’s win – and $215m worth of anti-trans ads – mean for the future of advertising. The Drum https://www.thedrum.com/news/after-donald-trump-s-victory-marketers-weigh-their-role-countering-divisive

McNeill, Zane (November 5, 2024). Republicans Spent Nearly $215M on TV Ads Attacking Trans Rights This Election. Truthout https://truthout.org/articles/republicans-spent-nearly-215m-on-tv-ads-attacking-trans-rights-this-election/

Garcia, Nicole (March 28, 2024). Transgender attorney says Musk’s handling of X is ‘extremely concerning.’ WGBH https://www.wgbh.org/news/local/2024-03-28/transgender-attorney-says-musks-handling-of-x-is-extremely-concerning

Gilbert, David (March 28, 2024). Elon Musk’s X Is Suspending Accounts That Reveal a Neo-Nazi Cartoonist’s Alleged Identity. WIRED https://www.wired.com/story/elon-musk-x-blocked-journalists-researchers-neo-nazi-cartoonist/

Ingram, David (March 21, 2024). Elon Musk’s X bans revealing the names of anonymous users after scrutiny of an antisemitic cartoonist. NBC News https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/social-media/elon-musk-x-bans-revealing-names-anonymous-users-cartoon-rcna144486

Wiggins, Christopher (March 20 2024). Elon Musk’s X reinstates transgender Harvard lawyer’s account after suspension. The Advocate https://www.advocate.com/news/alejandra-caraballo-x-reinstated

Wiggins, Christopher (March 20 2024). Elon Musk’s X bans transgender Harvard lawyer for naming a neo-Nazi. The Advocate https://www.advocate.com/media/alejandra-caraballo-banned-x

Sprayregen, Molly (March 18, 2024). Elon Musk shamed for protecting an alt-right cartoonist while letting transphobia flourish on X. LGBTQ Nation https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2024/03/elon-musk-shamed-for-protecting-an-alt-right-cartoonist-while-letting-transphobia-flourish-on-x/

Freedman, Ani (February 22, 2024). Legal Expert: New Hampshire’s Bills Mirror National Trends in Anti-Trans Legislation. InDepthNH https://indepthnh.org/2024/02/22/legal-expert-new-hampshires-bills-mirror-national-trends-in-anti-trans-legislation/

Carless, Will (November 2, 2023). When Libs of TikTok tweets, threats increasingly follow. USA Today https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/investigations/2023/11/02/libs-of-tiktok-tweets-death-bomb-threats/71409213007/

Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition (2023). Announcing our Professionals for Trans Rights 2023 Honorees! https://www.masstpc.org/announcing-our-professionals-for-trans-rights-2023-honorees/

Muldowney, Decca (September 5 2023). How Trans Harvard Lawyer Got Dragged Into Bomb Hoax Terror. Daily Beast https://www.thedailybeast.com/how-trans-harvard-lawyer-alejandra-caraballo-got-pulled-into-bomb-hoax-terror/

Urquhart, Evan (April 15, 2023). Did the NYT Plan Another Anti-Trans Skewed Article? Assigned Media https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/did-the-nyt-plan-another-anti-trans-skewed-article

Futrelle, David (March 15, 2023). Jesse Singal is not mad. Please don’t put in the newspaper that he got mad. We Hunted the Mammoth https://www.wehuntedthemammoth.com/2023/03/15/jesse-singal-is-not-mad-please-dont-put-in-the-newspaper-that-he-got-mad/comment-page-1/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email

Press release (December 13, 2022). At Hearing, Members and Witnesses Detail the Ongoing Threat Posed by Anti-Democratic Extremist Groups. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Democrats https://oversightdemocrats.house.gov/news/press-releases/at-hearing-members-and-witnesses-detail-the-ongoing-threat-posed-by-anti

United States Congress (2022). [Alejandra Caraballo Biography]. https://www.congress.gov/117/meeting/house/115236/witnesses/HHRG-117-GO02-Bio-CaraballoA-20221213.pdf

Lorenz, Taylor (November 24, 2022). “Opening the gates of hell”: Musk says he will revive banned accounts. The Washington Post https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/11/24/twitter-musk-reverses-suspensions/

Christensen, Jen (August 18, 2022). Boston Children’s Hospital says it’s gotten violent threats over care for transgender children/ CNN https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/17/health/boston-hospital-gender-affirming-care-threat/index.html

Freyer, Felice J.; Lazar, Kay (August 17, 2022). Right-wing groups hit Boston Children’s with barrage of threats over trans health program. The Boston Globe https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/08/17/metro/right-wing-groups-hit-boston-childrens-with-barrage-threats-over-trans-health-program/

Beres, Amanda (June 23, 2022). Women We Love 2022: Alejandra Caraballo. Go Mag https://gomag.com/article/women-we-love-2022-alejandra-caraballo/

Lorenz, Taylor (April 19, 2022). Meet the woman behind Libs of TikTok, secretly fueling the right’s outrage machine. Washington Post https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/04/19/libs-of-tiktok-right-wing-media/

Tensley, Brandon (March 10, 2022). The news out of Florida and Texas exemplifies a larger conservative trend. CNN https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/10/us/lgbtq-rights-desantis-race-deconstructed-newsletter/index.html

Yurcaba, Jo (Sept. 22, 2021). Transgender people report years of battles for health insurance coverage. NBC News https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-health-and-wellness/transgender-people-report-years-battles-health-insurance-coverage-rcna2145

Rummler, Orion (August 18, 2021). Meet the First Trans Women of Color to Teach at Harvard Law. 19th News https://19thnews.org/2021/08/meet-the-first-trans-women-of-color-to-teach-at-harvard-law/ republished at them on August 23: https://www.them.us/story/meet-the-first-trans-women-of-color-to-teach-at-harvard-law

Ceballos, Joshua (May 18, 2021). Transgender Protesters Allege Discrimination at Miami Jails. Miami New Times https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/advocates-say-miami-jail-policies-hurt-transgender-inmates-12236803/

Lewis, Rebecca C. (September 8, 2020). Alejandra Caraballo, transgender trailblazer, eyes City Council run. City & State New York https://www.cityandstateny.com/personality/2020/09/alejandra-caraballo-transgender-trailblazer-eyes-city-council-run/175657/

Quinn, Anna (September 8, 2020 ). Record-Setting Trans Activist Launches Bid For BK Council Seat. Patch https://patch.com/new-york/prospectheights/record-setting-trans-activist-launches-bid-bk-council-seat

Shahrigian, Shant (September 7, 2020). After a career of firsts as transgender woman, Brooklyn lawyer sets sights on NYC Council. New York Daily News https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/ny-alejandra-caraballo-brooklyn-city-council-candidate-20200907-wjdvaxeuf5hfzkqvpu6mibt3tq-story.html

Tracy, Matt (June 21, 2019). Trans Community Board Member Makes History in Brooklyn. Gay City News https://gaycitynews.com/trans-community-board-member-makes-history-in-brooklyn/

Coverage in anti-trans press

Singal, Jesse (December 12, 2024). Did I Publish The Private Medical Records Of Transgender Children? Singal-Minded https://jessesingal.substack.com/p/did-i-publish-the-private-medical

Ryan, Benjamin [intro by Vinay Prasad] (October 26, 2024). Pediatric Gender Medicine: Dispatches From a Deceptive Medical Field. Sensible Medicine https://www.sensible-med.com/p/pediatric-gender-medicine-dispatches

Beal, James (April 22, 2024). Cass author condemns ‘misinformation’ spread by trans lawyer. The Times https://www.thetimes.com/uk/article/cass-author-condemns-misinformation-spread-by-trans-lawyer-b5t9hd92m

Murray, T.M. (September 1, 2023). Killed for a Rainbow Flag: Are Critics of Trans Ideology Responsible? Quillette https://quillette.com/2023/09/01/killed-for-a-rainbow-flag/

Singal, Jesse (April 25, 2023). On Alejandra Caraballo vs. Benjamin Ryan vs. Steven Thrasher. Singal-Minded https://jessesingal.substack.com/p/on-alejandra-caraballo-vs-benjamin

Professor Watchlist (December 7, 2022). Professor Profile: Alejandra Caraballo. https://www.professorwatchlist.org/professor/alejandracaraballo

Palmer, Ewan (December 14, 2022). ‘Bravo’: Nancy Mace Praised After Confronting Trans Activist Over Tweets. Newsweek https://www.newsweek.com/nancy-mace-violent-tweets-alejandra-caraballo-extremism-1767091

Picket, Kerry (December 13, 2022). GOP lawmaker grills transgender activist, over past tweets threatening Supreme Court justices. Washington Times https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2022/dec/13/nancy-mace-grills-alejandra-caraballo-transgender-/

Nava, Victor (December 13, 2022). Rep. Nancy Mace skewers LGBT activist with own tweets in ‘threats to democracy’ hearing. New York Post https://nypost.com/2022/12/13/rep-nancy-mace-skewers-liberal-activist-with-her-own-tweets/

Astor, Maggie (December 10, 2022). Transgender Americans Feel Under Siege as Political Vitriol Rises. New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/10/us/politics/anti-transgender-lgbtq-threats-attacks.html

Selected writing by Caraballo

Caraballo, Alejandra (July 17, 2025). The Oligarchs’ Coup Against the Free Press Is Happening Now. The Dissident https://www.thedissident.news/the-oligarchs-coup-against-the-free-press-is-happening-now/

Caraballo, Alejandra (June 20, 2025). Anatomy of a Hit Piece: Deconstructing The New York Times’ Attack on Transgender Rights in U.S. v. Skrmetti. The Dissident https://www.thedissident.news/anatomy-of-a-hit-piece-deconstructing-the-new-york-times-attack-on-transgender-rights-in-u-s-v-skrmetti/

Caraballo, Alejandra (June 3, 2025). The New York Times’ War on Trans People. The Dissident https://www.thedissident.news/the-new-york-times-war-on-trans-people/

Caraballo, Alejandra (May 27, 2025). Crackpots, Fools, and the Modern Sympathetic Elite. The Dissident https://www.thedissident.news/crackpots-fools-and-the-modern-sympathetic-elite/

Caraballo, Alejandra (May 21, 2025). Ken Paxton Can Access Your Prescription Records. The Dissident https://www.erininthemorning.com/p/ken-paxton-can-access-your-prescription

Caraballo, A. L., Conti-Cook, C., Pierre, Y., McGrath, M., & Aarons, H. (2023). Extradition in Post-Roe America. CUNY Law Review Vol. 26 > Iss. 1 (2023) https://academicworks.cuny.edu/clr/vol26/iss1/3/

Caraballo, Alejandra (2022). The Anti-Transgender Medical Expert Industry. Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, 50(4), 687–692. https://doi.org/10.1017/jme.2023.9

Gorin, Moti (2023). Comment on The Anti-Transgender Medical Expert Industry. Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, 2023;51(3):717-723.
https://doi.org/10.1017/jme.2023.144

Caraballo, Alejandra (November 21, 2022). The Texas Legislature Is Preparing an All-Out War on Trans People’s Existence. Slate https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2022/11/texas-transgender-ban-drag-shows-criminalize-parents.html

Caraballo, Alejandra (June 21, 2023). To protect gender-affirming care, we must learn from trans history. Harvard Public Health https://hsph.harvard.edu/news/to-protect-gender-affirming-care-we-must-learn-from-trans-history/

Caraballo, Alejandra (July 29, 2022). We’re Going to See Abortion Fugitives. Here’s How to Protect Them. Slate https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2022/07/abortion-fugitives-extradition-laws.html

Caraballo, Alejandra (February 24, 2022). Remote Learning Accidentally Introduced a New Danger for LGBTQ Students. Slate https://slate.com/technology/2022/02/remote-learning-danger-lgbtq-students.html

Caraballo, Alejandra; Greenesmith, Heron (March 17, 2022). The Narrative on Trans Rights Is Being Shaped by Right-Wing Media. Teen Vogue https://www.teenvogue.com/story/trans-people-right-wing-media

Caraballo, Alejandra (May 2, 2016). The Rift Between Greater Democracy and the Perils of Demagogues. Medium https://medium.com/@Esqueer/theres-something-to-be-said-of-the-inherent-rift-between-the-move-to-greater-democracy-and-the-46460b3349eb

Media

Five Minute News with Anthony Davis and Alejandra Caraballo (November 16, 2025). Alejandra Caraballo on the minorities and ‘new left’ energy pushing back on the Trump dictatorship. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSkQvcYiP28

Faculty Voices (January 22, 2025). Episode 69: Alejandra Caraballo on Implications for LGBTQ Community Under Trump’s Administration. https://faculty-voices.simplecast.com/episodes/alejandra-caraballo-on-implications-for-lgbtq-community-under-trumps-administration-f8zobcpf

The Laverne Cox Show with Laverne Cox and Alejandra Caraballo (November 1, 2023 ). Anti-Trans Troll Legislation w/ Alejandra Caraballo. https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-the-laverne-cox-show-76844261/episode/anti-trans-troll-legislation-w-alejandra-caraballo-127237856/

Original Jurisdiction with David Lat and Alejandra Caraballo (May 31, 2023). A Leading Voice For Transgender Rights: An Interview With Alejandra Caraballo. https://davidlat.substack.com/p/a-leading-voice-for-transgender-rights

Oversight Committee Democrats (December 13, 2022). Alejandra Caraballo’s Testimony: Confronting White Supremacy Part VII. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Gk0QY_XvJA