The Trump administration is officially coming for your poppers.
Double Scorpio, a beloved LGBTQ-owned brand known for its poppers, lubes, and accessories, has shut down after an FDA raid on its offices. In a move that smells suspiciously like a targeted attack, the company scrubbed its social media and website, leaving only a statement confirming that the feds had shut them down.
“We’ve always cared about making an authentic product and supporting our community,” the statement read. “We are very proud that we built a brand people can trust, and we don’t want to see that trust exploited.” They urged their followers to keep supporting queer businesses and drag queens—because let’s be real, that’s what matters.
But Double Scorpio isn’t the only casualty. Other major poppers suppliers, including Pac-West Distributing (makers of Rush), have also vanished from the web. This crackdown, seemingly coordinated, has left the LGBTQ community questioning what’s next.
Why Now? The RFK Jr. Factor
The FDA, now under the leadership of Trump’s Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is finally making good on decades of homophobic paranoia. Kennedy, a notorious conspiracy theorist, has long claimed that poppers caused AIDS—yes, you read that right. In a resurfaced video, he once ranted, “A hundred percent of the people who died in the first thousand AIDS cases were addicted to poppers.” The science community, of course, has shredded that claim to bits, but Trump’s administration has never let facts get in the way of policy.
This sudden enforcement reeks of Reagan-era HIV panic, where LGBTQ+ health and safety were deemed secondary to conservative moral crusades. Since the 1970s, poppers have been a staple in gay nightlife, from sweaty dance floors to… well, you know where. The FDA has historically let them exist in a legal gray area, but under Trump, that’s changed.
LGBTQ+ Backlash & The Bigger Picture
Health advocates and LGBTQ+ rights groups are calling this a dangerous overreach. “We look to the Secretary of HHS to protect the health and well-being of all. RFK Jr. has consistently proven he is incapable of grasping, let alone upholding, the principles of equity and scientific integrity,” read a statement from Advocates for Trans Equality.
This is more than just about poppers—it’s about control. Whether it’s targeting drag performers, trans healthcare, or now queer nightlife, the playbook remains the same: strip away autonomy and dignity from the LGBTQ+ community.
The question now is: What’s next? A ban on glitter? A drag queen registry? While the FDA might think they can clean up the streets, they might just find out that the queer community knows how to fight back.