Trans Formations Project Newsletter ∙ 12/9/22

Hi everyone. Today is Friday, December 9th and we are back with our weekly round up of legislative and other related news affecting trans people in the U.S.

We are kicking off this week’s newsletter with an action item in Ohio. On Monday, December 12th, the Ohio State Board of Education will be hearing testimony on a resolution which would oppose federal Title IX anti-discrimination protections, attempting to implement anti-trans bathroom bans, misgendering rules, and forced outing in schools. There are multiple actions you can take to voice your opposition to this resolution before voting occurs on Tuesday, December 13th. Folks in Ohio can testify and attend the hearing on Monday in Columbus, Ohio. Folks can also submit written testimony, sign the petition, or contact state board members. More information on how to do your part can be found here. 

Thing(s) We Won

Two positive bills were introduced in South Carolina. One is S0072, sponsored by Senator Gerald Malloy (D), which would add severity to murders committed based on actual or perceived identities, explicitly including gender identity, gender, and sexual orientation. The second is S0296, sponsored by Senator Karl Allen (D), which is a hate crime protection bill explicitly adding sexual orientation and gender identity or expression as a protected class from assault and property destruction.

A positive bill, SB36, was released in California. This bill would prevent magistrates from issuing a warrant or arresting anyone charged under abortion bans or trans health care bans in other states, expanding protections in place under SB107, another refugee bill.

HB384 was pre-filed in Missouri. This is a positive bill, sponsored by Representative Rasheen Aldridge (D), which would add sexual orientation and gender identity as a protected class in reference to anti-discrimination statues. 

A final piece of good news: this week’s hearing on Ohio HB151 was canceled. As a refresher, this was a sports ban bill that would restrict student athletes in Ohio from playing on teams consistent with their gender identity and could require children to undergo internal genital analysis. Legislators could have pushed this bill through during the lame duck session, but so far have held off. We will keep an eye on this bill in the coming weeks heading into the 2023 legislative session. In the meantime, you can leave a message stating your opposition to this sports ban bill here.

And with that, we move on to the onslaught of anti-trans legislation that continues to be introduced for the 2023 legislative sessions across the U.S…

What the Heck Happened This Week?

Two anti-LGBTQ+ bills were pre-filed in Missouri. First, SB134 would prohibit any school personnel from discussing sexual orientation or gender identity with all students, not just K-5. Second, SB29 is a school sports bill that would ban children from playing on sports teams consistent with their gender identity.

South Carolina pre-filed multiple anti-trans bills, including SC274 which trans activists are calling “one of the worst trans bills I've ever seen.”

• To begin, S0274 is a healthcare ban which would ban transgender people ages 21 and under from receiving gender affirming care. This marks the second bill attempting to ban transgender healthcare for adults so far this legislative session. Among other things, this bill would also force trans adults to obtain a letter of support from a licensed psychiatrist to receive any gender transition procedures, returning to an outdated and regressive policy.

• SB243 was pre-filed. This is a proposed healthcare ban which would prohibit physicians from providing gender-affirming health care for minors. Like other healthcare bans across the country, this bill would have an exception for intersex children.

• S0234 was prefiled, a so-called “parental rights act” which forces schools to alert parents before discussing gender, sexuality, and romantic relationships so that parents can withdraw their children from this content.

• S0276 was also pre-filed. This bill would amend the state constitution and make it that gender, for all purposes within the state, is defined as an individual's sex assigned at birth. This would effectively remove any gender-affirming rights in the state, such as driver's licenses and birth certificates aligning with folks' gender identity.

As a final piece of news, Twitch added tens of thousands of global “charities” to its platform, including the anti-trans hate group LGB alliance. We at the Trans Formations Project stand against this update and urge you to tell Twitch that platforming hate isn’t charity.

And that’s a wrap on this week’s newsletter. We’ll be back next Friday with another summary.