Tomorrow Will be Different by Sarah McBride
Posted Tue Jan 14 2025
A timely and captivating memoir about gender identity set against the backdrop of the transgender equality movement, by a leading activist and the National Press Secretary for the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest LGBTQ civil rights organization. Sarah McBride is on a mission to fight for transgender rights around the world. But before she was a prominent activist, and before she became the first transgender person to speak at the Democratic National Convention in 2016, she was a teenager struggling with her identity. With emotional depth and unparalleled honesty, Sarah shares her personal struggle with gender identity, coming out to her supportive but distraught parents, and finding her way as a woman. She inspires readers with her barrier-breaking political journey that took her, in just four years, from a frightened, closeted college student to one of the nation's most prominent transgender activists walking the halls of the White House, passing laws, and addressing the country in the midst of a heated presidential election. She also details the heartbreaking romance with her first love and future husband Andy, a trans man and activist, who passed away from cancer in 2014 just days after they were married. Sarah's story of identity, love, and tragic loss serves as a powerful entry point for readers who want to gain a deeper understanding of gender identity and what it means to be openly transgender. From issues like bathroom access to healthcare, identification and schools, Sarah weaves the important political milestones, cultural and political debates, and historical context into a personal journey that will open hearts and change minds. Tomorrow Will Be Different highlights Sarah’s work as an activist and the key issues at the forefront of the fight for trans equality, providing a call-to-arms and empowering look at the road ahead. The fight for equality and freedom has only just begun. “We must never be a country that says there’s only one way to love, only one way to look, and only one way to live.” –Sarah McBride
Growing up in California, I was raised to be accepting and supportive of all gender identities and sexualities. However, as a straight, cisgender male, I never fully understood or empathized with what people in these communities experience. Sarah McBride's Tomorrow Will Be Different helped me empathize by following Sarah's life as a transgender girl. Tomorrow Will Be Different is a heartfelt, essential book for all people to read to develop an understanding of transgender people and to motivate you to make the world a better place for everyone.
Despite being nonfiction, this book is still an engaging story about Sarah, with insights scattered throughout the novel. I like how when Sarah recounts her life, she brings up relevant statistics about transgender people's experiences. For instance, when she comes out to her parents, she mentions how 41% of transgender people attempt suicide, but that percentage halves when the parents are supportive. This technique made the statistics more memorable, and hearing Sarah's story gave me a deeper and more empathetic understanding of the issues. The novel's narrative format kept me engaged and reading the book.
Tomorrow Will Be Different does an excellent job of memorably explaining issues that transgender people face. Some things I've learned from this book are:
- When transgender people come out, many parents, even if they're liberal, will be worried that their kid won't find success as a transgender person or that their kid will become someone else
- What transitioning is and how this process looks different for different people
- The rationalization behind how someone can be transgender despite gender being a social construct (social constructs are still real things that affect people. e.g: money)
- The many places where transgender people have to worry about discrimination
- Until recently, it was legal to discriminate on the basis of gender identity in the workplace, and there still isn't a federal law that bans discrimination based on gender identity in public areas like restaurants
Many of these things surprised me, especially the last point. These rights seem so essential that it's appalling that some people in the United States don't have them.
Many parts of this book made me more empathetic and aware of the urgency of these issues. One of my favorite quotes from the novel is
"Each time we ask anyone—whether they are transgender, Black, an immigrant, Muslim, Native American, gay, or a woman—to sit by and let an extended conversation take place about whether they deserve to be respected and affirmed in who they are, we are asking people to watch their one life pass by without dignity or fairness. That is too much to ask of anyone."
It was fascinating to hear about Sarah's role as an activist and the actions involved. Learning how activists must take a whip count, convince politicians, and amend bills to make them laws was engaging and insightful.
I cried so much when reading this, from hearing the different transgender Delewarean stories to the love story between Sarah and Andy. I loved seeing their relationship blossom, and I was crushed when Andy developed terminal cancer.
One nitpick is that the book was slower-paced than the fiction novels I'm used to. However, this is expected because this is a real person's life, not a fictional story. Tomorrow Will Be Different is the first memoir I've read, so I don't have the context to compare it with other memoirs.
I don't know how much transgender people will learn from this book (because I'm not transgender), but I believe every cisgender person should read Tomorrow Will Be Different. Sarah's story helped me empathize with transgender people and revealed the issues and considerations they face. It's also an interesting story about Sarah's life and her significant impact on LGBTQ rights.