When the system becomes the threat
Since we launched Arm the Dolls in December, our mission has been to make sure trans people can exercise their inherent right to self-defense with the same confidence and access as everyone else.
We build guides. We track legislation. We explain processes that were never designed with us in mind and try to make them navigable.
A part of that work which we have taken very seriously is knowing when the system is being used against us, and adjusting our guidance accordingly.
We have reached that point for constitutional carry states. This post is about what that means, why it matters, and why Kansas brought the issue to a head.
Our new guidance on Constitutional Carry.
In August 2024, the Texas Department of Public Safety was directed by Attorney General Ken Paxton to begin tracking anyone who requests a gender marker change on state identification. DPS employees were instructed to forward names, driver’s license numbers, and scanned court orders to an internal email address.
Crucially, this dragnet captured not just people who completed the process, but people who simply asked questions about it. As of August 2025, over 110 names have been collected. The purpose of this database has never been disclosed.
We have reached a point in this country where trans people simply asking for official guidance on how to exist within the system are being added to secretive state databases by adversarial politicians who are clear with both their hostility and goals.
This is the context in which we have to consider how we as a community approach optional permit applications in Constitutional Carry states.
Permits are optional for most use cases in Constitutional Carry states. When you submit that optional application, you voluntarily hand over your personal identifying information and for our community this means the potential that these documents include name change court orders, mismatched gender markers, and more.
This information enters databases controlled by agencies that, in a growing number of states, are led by officials who have demonstrated they will use any and all information they have access to attack our community.
These people and systems cannot be trusted. History shows us how these lists are used.
Arm the Dolls is formally updating our guidance for all Constitutional Carry states. We strongly recommend that trans people rely on Constitutional Carry and decline optional permit applications unless they have a specific, essential need that cannot be met any other way.
This new guidance has been added to our existing guides for Arizona, Texas, Georgia, Tennessee, Ohio, and Florida.
These permits have real benefits. Interstate reciprocity is especially important to a community that is often forced to relocate. We are not dismissing those considerations.
In an environment where state agencies are building lists of trans people for undisclosed purposes, voluntarily adding yourself to another government database requires justification beyond convenience.
We recognize that there are those within our community for whom that justification exists. For some, reciprocity is genuinely essential to their safety. That calculation is yours to make. For most people, in most situations, it simply isn’t there.
Constitutional Carry exists precisely because the right to self-defense is inherent. Use it.
What’s the matter with Kansas?
We have been watching Kansas closely over the last few weeks. Today we are publishing our Kansas guide, and we want to be direct about why this state required particular care.
Kansas is a Constitutional Carry state with some of the most permissive firearm laws in the country. There’s no waiting period, no registration requirements, no assault weapon restrictions, and statewide preemption.
In ordinary times, it would be a relatively straightforward guide to write. These are not ordinary times.
The Kansas Legislature has passed one of the most extreme anti-trans bills that has ever been seen in America. Governor Laura Kelly vetoed the bill, and as expected, the Legislature overrode that veto. SB 244 is now law.
As enacted, SB 244 invalidates all Kansas driver’s licenses and birth certificates bearing gender markers that do not match sex assigned at birth, and requires the Department of Revenue to reissue those documents with birth-assigned sex.
The implications for our community are grim. The immediate impact on trans Kansans who wish to purchase firearms are direct and serious.
A firearm purchase from a dealer requires valid, current government-issued ID. A CCHL application requires the same. Under SB 244, IDs with corrected gender markers have been invalidated, and your ability to interact with these systems may be disrupted or eliminated.
Beyond the documentary complications, there is the matter of who is processing these applications.
The Kansas Attorney General’s Office handles all CCHL applications. That office is led by Kris Kobach, who has been the primary architect of anti-trans legislation in Kansas and who has filed multiple lawsuits to prevent trans people from updating their identification documents.
We do not believe it is alarmist to recognize that submitting optional applications to this office, which documents your trans status, creates meaningful risk.
Our guidance for Kansas reflects this current reality:
- Do not apply for a CCHL. We cannot recommend voluntarily submitting applications documenting your trans status to an Attorney General’s office that has actively worked to harm our community.
- Rely on constitutional carry. Kansas allows permitless carry for those 21 and older who can legally possess a firearm. This is your right. Exercise it without creating unnecessary records.
- Monitor the legal situation closely. Litigation is expected. The interaction between SB 244 and federal firearms regulations remains unclear.
- If you already have a CCHL, consult with an attorney about whether and how to proceed with renewal given the changed legal landscape.
We will continue to monitor the situation in Kansas and developing litigation challenging SB 244.
Rights are not privileges
We wrote in January, after the murder of Alex Pretti, that the trans community cannot depend on others to protect our rights. We have seen in the weeks since that this was not pessimism but observation. Rights are not privileges extended by those in power. They are inherent, and they require defense.
Part of that defense is tactical. It means knowing when a system is being turned against you and declining to volunteer information to it. It means using the rights you have rather than seeking official permission for rights that are already yours.
The Kansas guide is live. It reflects our honest assessment of the situation on the ground and our commitment to giving guidance we can actually stand behind.
We keep us safe.
What you can do to help
Spread the word. Trans Kansans need to know this situation exists, and they need it now, before SB 244 moves forward. Share this post and the Kansas guide.
Know your state. If you live in a constitutional carry state and you’re holding an optional permit or considering applying for one, revisit that decision. Think about who controls that data and what they’ve demonstrated they’re willing to do with it.
Stay current. This guide will be updated as the Kansas legal situation develops. Bookmark it. Check back.
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