While the vast majority of attention is focused on Putin's invasion of the Ukraine, LGBTQ Americans are reminded that there are forces in the country intent on giving us hell.
On Thursday, the Florida House passed that awful 'Don't Say Gay' bill. It will now go to the Senate where it is unfortunately expected to pass. And Gov. DeSantis will most likely sign it into law.
But that battle is still far from over.
Meanwhile in Texas, an awful directive by Gov Gregg Abbott targeting trans kids and their parents is meeting a resistance.
According to The USA Today:
District attorneys representing five of Texas' largest counties on Wednesday said they will not treat gender-affirming procedures for transgender youth as "child abuse," defying a push by the state's attorney general and governor to target the medical treatments.The news comes a day after an order from Gov. Greg Abbott mandated the state's child welfare agency treat gender-affirming procedures as "child abuse," a move with potential legal consequences for both parents of transgender youth and any teacher or other authority figure who interacts with a trans child. The district attorneys said they believe Gov. Abbott's order — and the legal opinion by Attorney General Ken Paxton on which the order is based — constitute "an egregious invasion of privacy."
Abbott's order has generated chaos around the state with parents of trans kids. Some fear that they will be prosecuted and have their children taken away. According to Time magazine, some parents are already receiving messages claiming that they have been reported.
Such as Lisa Stanton:
When Lisa Stanton looked at her phone on Wednesday morning, she felt like she’d been “physically punched.” The day before, Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a letter directing the state’s Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) to conduct “prompt and thorough” investigations into the families of trans and gender expansive youth who’ve received gender-affirming care, asserting that the care can “legally constitute child abuse.”Stanton and her family have long been public about their 11-year-old daughter, Maya, being trans. Maya testified in the state capital in 2021 against proposed legislation that would have criminalized gender-affirming care. And when Stanton opened her phone Wednesday morning, she saw a wall of social media messages from strangers saying they’d already reported her to Protective Services.
“I know I’m a good parent,” says Stanton, who lives in Houston. “My child is happy and healthy and thriving, and I know that what I’m doing is right for her.” Yet the messages still terrified her.
And celebrities are beginning to weigh in. Celebrities such as Jamie Lee Curtis, Elliot Page, Kerry Washington and Gabrielle Union criticized Abbott for his order..
“This is where we are,” Union tweeted Tuesday. “We shot past dangerous and horrific a long time ago. The rubber has hit the road so who is standing shoulder to shoulder in this fight?” Trans inclusivity is a cause close to Union's heart. The "Bring It On" star's 14-year-old stepdaughter, Zaya, came out as transgender in February 2020.
