Authoritarian leaders are increasingly using debates over gender issues as a means to undermine democratic norms, according to a new report from the University of California, Berkeley and the violence prevention organization Over Zero. The report, authored by Míriam Juan-Torres González, Laura Livingston, and Tara Chandra, outlines six key strategies used by such leaders to entrench their power through gender-related controversies.
Juan-Torres González, head of research at the Democracy & Belonging Forum at Berkeley’s Othering & Belonging Institute, explained that the concept of “gender ideology” originated in Vatican circles in the early 1990s. She said it has since evolved into a broad label used to group together issues like feminism, LGBTQ rights, and reproductive rights—topics that authoritarian populists oppose. “Authoritarians need enemies — people or ideas they claim are a threat,” the researchers write. “… This engineered threat often takes the form of fighting so-called ‘gender ideology,’ a moniker that unites women’s and LGBTQ rights and freedoms into a single boogeyman.”
The report details real-world examples, such as the cancellation of drag shows at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and the use of anti-Muslim rhetoric in the Netherlands to justify restrictive migration policies. The authors note that similar tactics are being employed globally, including in India, Brazil, and Ghana.
Juan-Torres González emphasized that debates over gender issues are used as a pretext for normalizing anti-democratic practices. She pointed to instances in several U.S. states, Hungary, and Russia where books featuring LGBTQ characters have been banned. “Combating gender ideology is this pretext to adopt authoritarian measures, first in the domain of gender and sexuality, but then more broadly,” she said.
Among the strategies identified in the report are constructing threats to justify extreme measures, reshaping societal values to challenge equality and pluralism, influencing culture through think tanks and community groups, building broad coalitions around opposition to “gender ideology,” dividing political opponents through polarizing issues, and using gender controversies as distractions from other political maneuvers.
The report also highlights international coordination among groups opposed to women’s and LGBTQ rights. Conservative networks such as the Political Network for Values and the World Congress of Families have facilitated the spread of similar rhetoric and legislation across countries. Legislation seen in Florida and Texas is noted as mirroring laws previously enacted in Russia and now appearing in Uganda and Georgia.
Juan-Torres González described how political focus on transgender rights has shifted rapidly in recent years. In 2019, conservative efforts to make transgender rights a central campaign issue were largely unsuccessful. However, by 2024, major political campaigns in the United States were spending heavily on anti-transgender advertising. She attributed this shift to deliberate efforts by political coalitions to create divisions around complex issues where public understanding is limited.
The researchers conclude that using “gender ideology” as a political tool is not just about targeting specific groups but about advancing broader anti-democratic agendas. “It is easier to disregard an ideology than disregard human lives and human rights,” Juan-Torres González said.
This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.
