The Trump administration’s second term feels less like a presidency and more like an extended horror movie. You know the kind — the one where the character is about to walk into danger, the audience is screaming for them to stop, but they keep moving forward. Only this time, we’re not watching a movie. We’re living it.
Many people in the comments on our past posts compare Trump’s policies to The Handmaid’s Tale. For those who haven’t read it or seen the Hulu series, Margaret Atwood’s classic is set in a near-future America taken over by a theocratic dictatorship called the Republic of Gilead. This regime strips away democracy, eliminates women’s rights, and enforces its laws with religious justification.
In Gilead, infertility has become widespread. The few women who can still bear children are turned into “Handmaids,” forced into sexual servitude for powerful men, all in the name of “God’s will.” The story follows one such woman, Offred, as she remembers her life before and struggles with the new reality.
Key themes in The Handmaid’s Tale include:
- Loss of Autonomy — Women have no control over their own bodies, jobs, or finances.
- Religious Extremism — Faith is twisted into a political weapon.
- Surveillance State — Neighbors, friends, and even family members report each other for minor offenses.
- Resistance in Silence — Most dissent happens in whispers and small acts, because speaking out can mean death.
Now compare that to Trump’s latest policy moves.
Loss of Autonomy
Just like Gilead, the administration has targeted women’s reproductive rights from the start. Federal funding for abortion services and family planning has been stripped. Courts are being stacked with judges known for opposing abortion access. Even emergency contraception and some fertility treatments are under political attack.
Religious Extremism as Law
Trump’s allies openly celebrate policies framed as “returning to Christian values.” This includes allowing religious groups to deny services based on their beliefs, even when it means refusing healthcare or housing to women and LGBTQ+ people.
Erasing Diversity and Equity
While Gilead is built on rigid hierarchies, Trump has taken aim at diversity, equity, and inclusion programs across federal agencies, schools, and nonprofits. These programs, which help level the playing field for marginalized communities, are being dismantled — much like Gilead’s total erasure of any identity outside their narrow vision of society.
State Control of Identity
Trump’s executive orders now define gender as fixed at birth. Nonbinary and transgender people are removed from federal documents and protections. This mirrors Gilead’s obsession with rigid, state-controlled roles for men and women.
The Handmaid’s Tale was meant to be a warning — a fictional mirror showing us the danger of letting rights be taken away piece by piece. But with every new executive order, Trump’s America inches closer to making Gilead look less like a warning and more like a prophecy.
This isn’t television. This is policy. And unlike a streaming series, there’s no “skip intro” button.
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