I just want to say this level of hate is fueled by fear and ignorance. Plain and simple. One of my jobs is to report on it so you’re aware and so you can support people, organizations, and movements fighting on our behalf. Today it’s NCLR and I’m grateful for their work because it’s more than a full time job to keep up with the hateful well oiled machine that is the Republican anti-trans & anti-lgbtq movement. They are obsessed with our trans fam right now and there are lots of ways to fight and NCLR does their fighting in the courtroom.
Family, this is your favorite queer radio personality Anna DeShawn with our queer news for today. If you enjoy what you hear rate & review us inside your fav podcasting app, okay. Also, last Wednesday I dropped an update on Brittney Griner.There is new information about how she’s doing and how the WNBA plans to keep her top of mind throughout the season. I think it’s good & I’d love for you to take a listen and tell me what you think. If you do enjoy it and find it informative, share it with a fri end. Now for the news.
Today I want to report on the work the National Center for Lesbian Rights is doing to combat all of the anti-LGBTA legislation happening across the country. There is so much of this hateful legislation going on that I end up reporting on it almost everyday. As I do I’m always thinking how do we fight this mess. How do we take action? Well NCLR is doing it so I want to dedicate this episode to that work and how we can support it.
Let’s start in Florida where On March 31, NCLR filed the first – and at this time only – lawsuit against Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay or Trans” bill. Representing Equality Florida and Family Equality, along with several individuals, NCLR, in partnership with Kaplan Hecker & Fink, is fighting to overturn this law. If you want to hear more about this I did a report on April 4th and included a link in the show notes.
On March 31st the governor of Arizona signed into law legislation that bans medically necessary and life saving healthcare for transgender youth. NCLR, along their partners at the ACLU are preparing to sue as a result. Hallelujah! Now this coincides with a successful lawsuit they already have on the books against Arizona Medicaid to allow transgender Arizonans to change the name on their birth certificates.
Now in good old Alabama they passed the first and only law in the country that mkes it a felony to provide heatthcare to transgender youth. Now NCLR, along with GLAAD, Southern Poverty Law Center, and the Human Rights Campaign, have filed a federal challenge to this insane & dangerous law. They are seeking an immediate order preventing it from taking effect.
I’m going to pause for a second and take a big deap breathe. Maybe you should too. Breathe in & out. We have three more states to go okay and I just want to say this level of hate is fueled by fear and ignorance. Plain and simple. One of my jobs is to report on it so you’re aware and so you can support people, organizations, and movements fighting on our behalf. Today it’s NCLR and I’m grateful for their work because it’s more than a full time job to keep up with the hateful well oiled machine that is the Republican anti-trans & anti-lgbtq movement. They are obsessed with our trans fam right now and there are lots of ways to fight and NCLR does their fighting in the courtroom.
Next up is South Carolina. On April 5, the South Carolina House passed a bill banning transgender girls from playing sports in public schools and colleges. If this hateful bill passes, NCLR is ready to file suit on behalf of trans kids in South Carolina, a state where NCLR recently challenged an anti-LGBTQ school curriculum law similar to Florida’s “Dont’ Say Gay or Trans” law that was on the books since the 1980s and won. They won y’all.
Tennessee. Tennessee. Tennessee. Earlier this year, NCLR and GLAAD filed a federal case challenging Tennessee’s discriminatory law requiring businesses to post warning signs if they permit transgender people to use restrooms based on their gender identity. And they aren’t done yet. They are gearing up to pass their own version of a “Don’t Say Gay or Trans” law and if they do, NCLR is ready and waiting to sue them too.
Last on the list today is Texas. Good old Texas. Now I reported numerous times about the disgusting actions of the Attorney General Ken Paxton and Governor Abbott against trans youth which culminated with Governor Abbott signing an order demanding affirming families of transgender children be investigated by Child Protective Services for abuse. In this case, NCLR immediately moved to partner with the incredible Transgender advocate groups on the groud in Texas, and they are actively supporting dozens of individual families as they navigate this ridiculous government intrusion into their lives.
Family, this is a whole lot and one of the things on my mind is that our visibility has come at a cost. We have more trans & LGBTQ folks in the public eye more than ever before; on television, in the movies, on red carpets etc. While at the same time encouraged because we have more trans & LGBTQ folks in the public eye more than ever before. Do you see what I mean? We are here and we aren’t going anywhere. Florida, Arizona, Alabama, South Carolina, Tennessee & Texas are just a handful of states perpetuating this anti-trans / anti-lgbtq rhetoric for their own political gain. There’s no truth in it. I saw there are actually 15 states working on such bills. I’m grateful there are organizations like NCLR doing the work in the courts. I’m also grateful there are LGBTQ advocates and activists doing work across this country & across disciplines to demand equity and equality. Hate will not win. I believe that.
Y’all know I always end with a word. Anna’s always got a word. The word today is fight. Fight for the things you believe in. Fight for what’s right. The fight will look different for everyone because we all have different gifts. Maybe your fight is at home raising your children to grow up to be loving & good human beings. Maybe your fight is in the classroom where you’re teaching young people about justice and freedom fighting movements. Maybe your fight is in the streets through protest and direct action. I can go and on. You fight how you need to fight just don’t stop fighting for what’s right. Till tomorrow family, peace
