What Purpose Looks Like When It Really Matters

Of course, by 18 puberty is complete and it’s too late for hormone blockers to help. This ruling signals a green light for similar laws nationwide, further limiting care and increasing mental health risks for transgender adolescents.

Make no mistake: young people will die as a result of this ruling.

A Trevor Project study found that anti-trans laws caused a 38–44% increase in suicide attempts among trans and nonbinary people aged 13–24. The 2024 U.S. National Survey on Mental Health of LGBTQ+ Youth showed that half of young trans people have considered suicide, and about 15% have attempted it—in the past year. The Supreme Court just made sure those numbers will rise.

I can tell you for certain—self-affirming care is not the cause of those rates.

My 19-year-old daughter, Sarah, is a trans woman. She started hormone blockers when she came out at 14 and began estrogen treatments later. For Sarah, self-affirming care wasn’t a decision—she knows exactly who she is and the care she needs.

Had she not had access to these treatments, I fear she might have become one of those statistics.

As business leaders, we can’t impact Supreme Court decisions. Our influence in Washington is limited.

But we can change how businesses show up as drivers of social good—through policy and a reexamination of what Corporate Social Responsibility really means.

What’s happening in America right now transcends politics. While daily news includes militarized crackdowns on citizens, efforts to jail political opponents, and threats to suspend habeas corpus, the business community remains largely silent.

Look at your LinkedIn feed. It’s crickets.

There’s a fear among leaders of offending Trump like we’ve never seen. Consumers don’t like it—and it’s not good for business.

Target eliminated its DEI policies to appease the far right. The result? Their stock is down ~35% this year.

In contrast, Costco shareholders rejected an anti-DEI proposal—and were rewarded. Their stock is up. In a recent quarter, Costco reported a 9% increase in revenue and gained 7 million new shoppers.

I get it—taking a stand isn’t easy.

During the first Trump administration, Traction created a policy called Days of Action after employees wanted to attend the Women’s March but didn’t want to use PTO. We gave them two days of paid leave annually to participate in democracy—however they see fit.

I wrote a post, Why We’re Offering Paid Leave for Activism, that went viral. Conservative media lost it. Daily Wire claimed we were “paying people to protest.” The SF Chronicle featured us in a story on the growing trend of “Social Justice Benefits.” Then came Breitbart, Fox News, and—you guessed it—trolls and threats.

(I detailed that whole experience in this Fast Company story if you're curious.)

But the outcome was powerful: we sparked a national conversation. Companies across the country contacted us for help enacting similar policies. In the next election, thousands gave workers time off to vote for the first time ever. We wanted our two Days of Action to become two million. I believe we reached it.

It takes courage to act and sometimes a small action, in line with your values, can make a big impact.

At the Cannes Lions last month, AXA and Publicis Conseil won the Titanium Grand Prix by adding three simple words to insurance contracts—"and domestic violence."

That small act of policy change empowered French women to escape abusive situations. As one Fortune 500 marketer wrote, “Purpose works when it solves real problems, not when it checks marketing boxes.”

In response to the legalized persecution now targeting trans people and their families, Traction has created a Gender-Affirming Care Relocation Benefit. We’ll reimburse employees up to $5,000 if they need to relocate to escape persecution.

My hope is that talking about this publicly inspires other companies to create similar Gender-Affirming Care Relocation Benefits—and ignites another urgent conversation.

This goes beyond LGBTQ+ rights. In the Trump era, corporations will benefit from tax cuts, while nearly every public civil service that doesn’t involve guns is being dismantled.

If Corporate America doesn't want to be taxed to fund the social safety net, the notion of "Corporate Social Responsibility" has to mean more. It’s no longer about charitable donations or giving employees an afternoon to pack kits for a shelter. Those are still great—but now, “responsibility” means protecting your people, your customers, and your community.

We are in a paradigm shift. The very role of government in society is changing.

Businesses should be shifting too. If we don’t do it now, it might be too late.

And when it comes to trans youth, “too late” might tragically be really too late.