These millions of Americans are more likely to live in poverty, be unemployed and have no family support

Quinn Merriss, an 18-year-old who identifies as transgender and non-binary, barely makes ends meet.

Quinn Merriss, an 18-year-old who identifies as transgender and non-binary, barely makes ends meet. Merriss was kicked out of their home after years of tension and arguments with their parents over being transgender. They now live independently without any financial support from relatives, working as a server earning $5.50 an hour plus tips. “I’m living paycheck to paycheck,” Merriss, who lives in an apartment in Cincinnati, told CNN. They manage to scrape by thanks to a housing assistance program, Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Merriss’ plight illustrates the harsh economic realities of millions of Americans who identify as transgender and/or non-binary. The evidence from research and surveys is unmistakable: People whose gender identity does not match their sex at birth are more likely to experience financial hardships than the general population. (Some transgender people identify as “non-binary,” which means they don’t conform to one particular gender.) They deal with “lower employment rates, lower household incomes, higher rates of poverty, greater public assistance use, and increased likelihood of food insecurity,” a 2022 study found. There are at least 5.3 million individuals who identify as transgender and/or non-binary in the United States, about the size of the Phoenix metropolitan area, according to the Pew Research Center. In interviews with CNN, economists, researchers and transgender people themselves say “transphobia,” or negative beliefs and attitudes about trans people, is to blame. Transitioning genders can also cost tens of thousands of dollars, and being in the closet is well documented to take a toll on mental health.