The US State Department’s annual human rights report was created to give Congress a clear accounting of how other governments treat their people, measured against international human rights law. Recent media reports indicate that the Trump administration is turning that purpose on its head by mandating reporting in support of ideological priorities at odds with governments’ human rights obligations.
The 2024 version of the State Department report issued by the Trump administration in August already removed or significantly reduced sections on political freedoms, corruption, gender-based violence, and LGBTQ+ persecution. New guidance sent in November to US embassy personnel worldwide looks set to do even more damage.
According to the Washington Post, embassies will be instructed to document whether governments are implementing various policies the Trump administration opposes as though they were human rights violations. In reality, though, many of these targeted policies are important efforts to support and improve respect for human rights. These include government policies to improve access to abortion services and gender-affirming care, as well as efforts to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion.
These changes would translate parts of the administration’s rights-abusing domestic policy agenda into US foreign policy.
This isn’t just about political slogans or ideological debates. US diplomatic pressure around these issues can influence whether people can exercise their rights, access essential services, and live with dignity. In many countries, restrictions on reproductive health care violate the rights of women and girls, while others on evidence-based gender-affirming careviolate the rights of transgender people, and attacks on inclusivity policies undermine the rights of marginalized people.
As the US government turns against key facets of international human rights protection, other governments should step forward. The stakes are high: when a country with global reach like the US warps its idea of rights to fit with a political agenda that undermines them, it risks weakening protections for people in every part of the world.
