This blog originally appeared at Human Rights Campaign.
“We’re Ensuring That These Anti-LGBTQ+ Extremists Who Are Doubling Down on a Political Agenda Do Not Win. We Are Ensuring that We Show Them That We Are Greater Than All of Their Hate”
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) recently held a virtual briefing to address the alarming surge of anti-LGBTQ+ bills introduced in state legislatures nationwide. Within just the first two months of 2023, HRC has identified and is monitoring a staggering total of 340 bills that aim to undermine LGBTQ+ rights. Of those, an alarming 150 bills specifically target transgender individuals, representing the highest number of bills focused on transgender rights in a single year thus far.
Notable developments this year include the introduction of 90 bills seeking to restrict access to age-appropriate and medically necessary healthcare for transgender youth, with two of these bills already being signed into law in Utah and South Dakota. Additionally, the number of bills proposing bathroom bans surpasses previous years’ figures, and 28 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have progressed through at least one legislative chamber, with 10 of them directly targeting transgender individuals. These developments underscore the urgent need for continued advocacy and support to protect the rights and well-being of the LGBTQ+ community.
In 2022, a concerning number of discriminatory anti-LGBTQ+ bills were introduced in state legislatures, with 315 bills in total, and 29 of them passing into law. However, the success rate of these efforts remained low, with less than 10% of the bills achieving their discriminatory goals. A significant portion of these bills, 149 in total, targeted the transgender and non-binary community, particularly focusing on children.
During the briefing, speakers highlighted the rejection of extremist candidates in the 2022 midterm elections, who had relentlessly attacked and smeared transgender youth. This demonstrated a clear disapproval of such tactics by voters. Nevertheless, far-right radicals have persisted in their attempts to ban LGBTQ+ events, spaces, and culture, including drag performances, contributing to an environment of hostility and violence towards the LGBTQ+ community. This was evident in incidents like the tragic Club Q shooting in Colorado Springs.
The briefing featured a range of speakers, including HRC President Kelley Robinson, HRC State Legislative Director and Senior Counsel Cathryn Oakley, Olivia Hunt from the National Center for Transgender Equality, Florida State Senator Shevrin Jones, 12-year-old transgender advocate Libby Gonzales from Texas, Kelly Carter Merrill, a parent of a transgender child from Virginia, and Dr. Stephen M. Rosenthal, Medical Director of the Child and Adolescent Gender Center at the University of California San Francisco. They discussed the impact of anti-LGBTQ+ legislative attacks on the community, the role of lawmakers in fueling extremism and hostility, and HRC’s strategy to combat the anticipated surge of anti-LGBTQ+ bills in the current year.
“Last year we came together to defeat 91% of the anti-LGBTQ+ bills,” said HRC President Kelley Robinson. “This year we are going to do it again. We see how hateful rhetoric and misinformation about who we are and what we stand for ultimately can translate into real-world violence, real-world harm for our people. We saw that in the aftermath of the Club Q shooting in Colorado. So this year we’re holding politicians to account. We’re ensuring that these anti-LGBTQ+ extremists who are doubling down on a political agenda do not win. We are ensuring that we show them that we are greater than all of their hate. We have the public on our side. We have the strategy on our side, and we have our lives on the line.”
“2023 is shaping up to be historically bad. So far we’re at 340 bad bills introduced across the country, including the most anti-transgender bills ever filed,” added HRC State Legislative Director and Senior Counsel Cathryn Oakley. “It couldn’t be any more clear that this is about discrimination. This is about young folks being prohibited from being able to live healthy, full lives.”
“It really feels like my legislators want everyone to believe that kids like me don’t really exist. They keep trying to convince everyone that I’m some kind of scary monster, or that I have something wrong with me,” said Libby Gonzales, a 12-year old transgender student in Texas. “I’m tired and scared every time I go to the Capital. I think maybe this time it will make an impact, but every session is worse than the last. The people leading our government should want every kid to have a great childhood. Instead, they’re the biggest bullies, continuing to take away my ability to play sports with my friends, and now they want to take away my health care, and call my parents, who love and protect me, child abusers.”
“These relentless attacks on transgender people are causing real harm even in the states where legislation fails or where leaders are standing up for voters and making it clear they’re not supporting these attacks on trans people, particularly on trans youth,” said National Transgender Center for Equality Policy Director Olivia Hunt. “75% of all LGBTQ+ youth say that hate crimes and threats of violence cause stress and anxiety, and that’s not surprising because they’re trying to live their lives.”
“The Governor and lawmakers are turning transgender kids – our state’s most vulnerable population – into a political football,” added Florida State Senator Shevrin D. Jones. “It’s 2023, not 1963. Standing back is not an option. Just talking about the problem is not an option. We cannot sit back and just watch because these policies that are coming to Florida today will be in Texas tomorrow, will be in Arizona next week, and will be in Tennessee the week after.”
“Most people in our community in Hanover County have been loving and accepting of our son’s journey. It makes sense to our neighbors who know us. They saw the positive shift in his life after he came out. Most people in our community support policies that would protect him in school,” said Kelly Carter Merrill, the mother of a 14-year old transgender boy living in Virginia. “But a minority of anti-trans extremists in our community feel emboldened by the national rhetoric to bring vile and often violent rhetoric to our school board meetings. All we want is for our child to be treated with dignity and respect at school, and while our child has found supportive friends, teachers, and activities at school, the anti-trans rhetoric is seeping into his school experience.”
“There have been bomb threats against at least two children’s hospitals, including ours,” said Dr. Stephen Rosenthal, Medical Director of the Child and Adolescent Gender Center at the University of California San Francisco. “There is a lot of misinformation that seems to be the basis of targets towards providers, and that’s another extremely stressful and unpleasant aspect of all of this. There’s a lot of effort that has to be made between medical providers and the public-interfacing aspect of our work, so that we can make sure that we’re able to continue to provide the resources and to do it in a way so that these resources are accessible to those that need them.”
The recent briefing by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) follows the conclusion of the 2022 state legislative sessions, during which a record-breaking 315 discriminatory anti-LGBTQ+ bills were introduced, with 29 of them ultimately becoming law. As the largest civil rights organization in the United States advocating for equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people, HRC envisions a society where LGBTQ+ individuals are fully embraced as valued members in all aspects of life, including their homes, workplaces, and communities.
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