Three misleading claims Republicans use to justify banning trans healthcare

Just like they spew lies about gays 'recruiting/grooming' children to justify censoring LGBTQ-oriented books and mentioning LGBTQ folks in classrooms, the religious right is following the same blueprint to justify their war against transgender kids. Such as what Texas Governor Gregg Abbott did on Wednesday in attempting to take steps to remove trans children from supportive parents.

According to The American Independent:

As part of their broader campaign attacking transgender rights, conservative lawmakers are now pushing inaccurate and misleading information about transgender youth whose families want them to be able to seek the potentially life-saving care they deserve. With a slate of bills that would outlaw gender-affirming care for minors, Republican governors and state lawmakers are targeting health care professionals who provide their patients with gender-affirming care such as hormone treatments, puberty blockers, and in some cases, gender-affirming surgery. 

 . . . Republican lawmakers have continued to insist that it is inappropriate for health care providers to treat gender dysphoria in children, which can lead to higher levels of depression and anxiety if left untreated. To make their argument, these lawmakers often rely on one of the following three misleading claims that medical experts have repeatedly debunked. 

Misleading Claim No. 1: Health care providers are casually giving gender-affirming care to minors.

Misleading Claim No. 2: 'Rapid-onset gender dysphoria' is responsible for kids' gender identity

Misleading Claim No. 3: Transition regret is prevalent.

The American Independent goes into much details with regards to why these claims are misleading. I hope folks will read the article and then share it. The first weapon against this mess is education and I have news for members of the LGBTQ community who aren't transgender. 

The religious right and their allies are coming for your rights, too. They are coming for all of us.

'SCOTUS will hear hate group lawsuit looking to overturn LGBTQ protections' & other Wed midday news briefs

Supreme Court to hear hate group lawsuit that could overturn LGBTQ protections - SCOTUS is gonna mess with us again, y'all. We've managed to get away by the skin of our teeth several times. We will see what happens here.  And of course this is the continued work of the Alliance Defending Freedom. Maybe now more attention will be paid by the media to how this group has declared war on LGBTQ people.

Two Students Sue School District for Banning LGBTQ+ Books - Court news isn't all bad.

Texas AG says transition care for minors is child abuse under state law - His opinion is pablum with no legal standing. You need to work on the cases against you on the grounds of corruption, Ken. No one has forgotten about them. 

We need to talk about Colman Domingo, the queer rising star - Openly gay black actor who kicks ass. Yes we do.

Florida's 'Don't Say Gay' bill supported by group whose former spokesman once called for kidnapping children out of same-sex households

As I once stated before, one can easily tell that Florida's 'Don't Say Gay' Bill is a rotten idea by seeing just who supports it. Religious right group the Family Research Council  falsely claimed that the bill protects children. Of course the Family Research Council is also the same group whose president, Tony Perkins, once said that gays were the pawns of Satan. 

Recently another religious right group, the American Family Association, came out in support of the bill via an article on its 'news' webpage, American Family News:

President Biden and his administration are frazzled by state efforts that directly oppose the left's agenda to keep parents out of the loop while they sexualize young public school students. 

 Cultural issues writer Laurie Higgins of the Illinois Family Institute (IFI) finds Biden's strong opposition to House Bill 1557, which discourages classroom discussion about sexual orientation and gender identity in the primary grade levels, very revealing. "They're saying, 'We want to use our youngest grades to [have] teachers lead discussions on homosexuality or cross-dressing;' that's in effect what they're saying," Higgins notes. "People need to listen to that and take them seriously." 

 

That is a disgusting lie. But then the article goes even lower via the following passage:

Another important part of the bill would allow parents to have access to their children's student records. "I think that this is aimed directly at the many school districts now who are affirming kids' trans identities and concealing what they're doing from their parents," Higgins submits.

Higgins - and the AFA - are deliberately minimizing an alarming amendment to the bill which would have forced school officials to out LGBTQ kids to their parents, even if the act could lead to the possible abuse or neglect by said parents. The amendment was withdrawn by the bill's sponsor because of the firestorm it caused.

Just like the Family Research Council,  AFA's brand is the demonization of LGBTQ people. And just like FRC,  the American Family Association was declared a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center because of this. 

Controversial 'outing' amendment to FL 'Don't Say Gay' bill withdrawn after playing a huge role in riling up opposition

From Raw Story:

An amendment to Florida's controversial "Don't Say Gay" bill that would have forced teachers to out LGBTQ students to their parents has been dropped. Local news station WFLA reports that Florida State Rep. Joe Harding has withdrawn his amendment, which came under heavy criticism from Florida teachers, students, and parents. "The bill would have forced schools to out their LGBTQ+ students to parents within six weeks of a student disclosing their sexual orientation to school personnel," WFLA reports. "The amendment had set up what it called a protocol to encourage a safe discussion between parents and students, but removed protections for students who would have potentially been subject to abuse, abandonment or neglect by their families." 

Raw Story also said that even without the amendment, the bill itself is still moving forward.  And while it still has a good chance of passing, it is also galvanizing Democratic lawmakers and Florida's LGBTQ community. 

The USA Today pointed to Harding's now withdrawn amendment as a reason why opposition got supercharged:

Harding's latest amendment acted as virtual gasoline on an online fire, stoking outrage from members of the LGBTQ community, including openly gay Democratic state Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith. The amendment "make(s) it even more dangerous for vulnerable kids with a STATE-MANDATED outing of LGBTQ students to parents, specifically in cases of abuse, abandonment + neglect. This will have devastating consequences for our youth," he tweeted. Smith also cited research that LGBTQ youth are four times "more likely to seriously consider, make a plan for, or attempt suicide than their peers AND that at least one LGBTQ youth aged 13–24 attempts suicide every 45 seconds in the U.S." "#DontSayGay makes this worse," he added.

Other Democratic lawmakers have also condemned the bill, calling it toxic and personal. And according to The Tallahassee Democrat, it's not just Democrats who have problems with it:

Jon Harris Mauer, public policy director for Equality Florida, said he's heard concerns about the amendment from legislators on both sides of the aisle. "They have withdrawn this amendment but have made clear they are willing to take a disgusting, unfettered attack on LGBTQ youth. In response to public pressure, this particular amendment was withdrawn, but there are many steps left in this process and we have to stay vigilant," Mauer said.

So whether the bill passes or not, it looks like this situation is far from over. And regardless of whatever reason its supporters give, it looks like they are going to get more than they bargained for. Whatever victory they have if the bill passes could be seen as pyrrhic when compared to how it has galvanized opposition.

15 other 'Don't Say Gay'-type bills popping up around the nation as backlash may be growing against them

 It looks like Florida isn't the only state pushing a 'Don't Say Gay' bill. According to a recent article in The Hill, there are 15 other bills popping up around the nation:

Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill is just one part of a nationwide trend. There are 15 similar bills moving through state legislatures that restrict how textbooks and curriculums teach LGBTQ+ topics, who can be hired and what teachers are allowed to say when it comes to gender identity and sexual orientation.

 A House bill in Tennessee would ban textbook and instructional materials that “promote, normalize, support, or address lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) lifestyles” in K-12 schools. Another, in Kansas, seeks to amend the state’s obscenity law to make using classroom materials depicting “homosexuality” a Class B misdemeanor. Legislators in Indiana are working to bar educators from discussing in any context “sexual orientation,” “transgenderism” or “gender identity” without permission from parents.

. . . Oklahoma legislators have put five measures before its Congress that regulate how schools from K-12 to higher education teach LGBTQ+ issues. Two bills, SB 1142 and SB 1654, would prohibit librarians and teachers from distributing materials on or outright discussing “any form of non-procreative sex,” gender identity and “lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender issues.” 

 Another Oklahoma Senate bill would ban public schools from employing anyone who “promotes positions in the classroom or at any function of the public school that is in opposition to closely held religious beliefs of students.” And SB 1141 would bar requiring public university courses on “gender, sexual, or racial diversity, equality, or inclusion,” supplementing an already-passed House bill that is currently part of a federal lawsuit brought by the ACLU.

While supporters of these bills claim they are trying to protect children and give parents more power, a slow but steady backlash is arising.  LGBTQ parents, kids, and allies are coming out to speak against and protest the Florida bill. And as the bill works it way through the legislature, that number is growing.  President Biden and Colorado Governor Jared Polis, who is openly gay, have publicly denounced the Florida bill and other anti-LGBTQ legislation. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and his husband Chasten have also criticized Florida's bill, saying that it will harm LGBTQ kids. 

Lastly, in a bizarre move,  the co-sponsor of the Florida bill recently added an amendment requiring schools to out LGBTQ students to their parents even if the outing could potentially lead to violence or neglect against the child. 

To say that this hasn't help the bill's popularity would be an extreme understatement.

Florida's 'Don't Say Gay' bill being changed to deliberately expose LGBTQ kids to violence and abandonment

 As it was originally written, Florida's 'Don't Say Gay' bill is a nightmare to the state's LGBTQ community. But a recent change may make the bill more dangerous to LGBTQ kids.

A portion of the bill originally said that school officials must out LGBTQ students to their parents unless "a reasonably prudent person would believe that such a disclosure would lead to abuse, abandonment, or neglect . . ." 

In a change suggested by the bill's sponsor, Rep Joe Harding, school officials would be required to out LGBTQ kids to their parents regardless of whether or not it would lead to abuse, abandonment, or neglect.

An amendment was just filed by the sponsor of #DontSayGay to make it even more dangerous for vulnerable kids with a STATE-MANDATED outing of LGBTQ students to parents, specifically in cases of abuse, abandonment + neglect.

This will have devastating consequences for our youth.😢 pic.twitter.com/3s89rcMrMN

— Rep. Carlos G Smith (@CarlosGSmith) February 20, 2022

The following is the portion Rep Smith is talking about

There is no way to put this politely - the alteration of the bill makes things worse. It demands that school officials out LGBTQ kids even if they know that the consequences would lead to abuse, abandonment, or neglect. The new conditions which come along with this are deliberately vague and completely unenforceable. It requires schools officials to come up with some sort of  "plan," but it doesn't require parents to participate.

The irony of the 'Don't Say Gay' bill is that it sprang from the mindset that school officials interfere with how parents are raising their children. The message is that 'parents know best.' But this bill proves that in some cases, parents may not know best. And the continuous maneuvering proves that the sponsor and supporters of the bill know this but when it comes to the well-being of LGBTQ kids, they simply don't care.

'Pro-LGBTQ companies funded FL lawmakers who back 'Don't Say Gay' bill' & other Fri midday news briefs

Pro-LGBTQ+ Companies Funded Florida Lawmakers Who Back 'Don't Say Gay' - Houston, we have a problem.

Virginia house passes first bill to roll back LGBTQ rights after Republicans won it back​ - Y'all knew they would try this.

Gay lawmaker snaps as NYC mayor says he’ll hire “kill the gays” pastor for “faith-based” position - Very, very unacceptable, Mayor Adams.

LGBTQ Representation On TV Has Hit Record Highs, But Still Falls Short In Key Areas - Good for a start but improvement never hurts.