Three anti-trans State Bills in Arkansas, Louisiana, and West Virginia have been delayed after facing political resistance.
In Louisiana, the House of Representatives has voted to sustain a bill that would ban trans athletes from participating in sports consistent with their gender identity.
A Republican Louisiana House majority fell short of two votes to overturn Democrat Gov. John Bel Edwards’ veto of anti-trans regulation.
The Bill, SB 156, would prevent trans women and girls from participating in women’s sports. The Louisiana House vote concluded at 68-30, with Republicans falling short of the 70 votes they needed to achieve a first-ever veto-override.
Louisiana lawmakers failed to get the needed number of votes which blocked the veto override which aimed to ban trans athletes from competing in sports in line with their gender identity.
In Arkansas, US District Judge Jay Moody blocked a discriminatory law that would have denied evidence-based medically necessary care to transgender young people.
The ACLU had filed a lawsuit, in May, seeking a preliminary injunction to block the law ahead of its July 28th effective date. Yesterday’s ruling means that the law has been temporarily blocked and will not go into effect on its planned date.
In West Virginia, District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin issued a preliminary injunction to halt the enforcement of West Virginia’s anti-trans sports ban. The ACLU and Lambda Legal sought the preliminary injunction in May, according to the Human Rights Campaign.
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit in the District Court for the Southern District of Florida to challenge an anti-trans Florida law.
25 anti-LGBTQ bills have been enacted into law and more than 250 anti-LGBTQ bills have been under consideration in state legislatures across the country, according to HRC statistics.
Arkansas, Alabama, Florida, Tennessee, Mississippi, Montana, and West Virginia are seven states that have enacted a total of twelve anti-transgender laws this session.
“Given the unprecedented onslaught of state legislative attacks, we have a responsibility to utilize every tool in our belt to safeguard the LGBTQ community, including suing the states that infringe upon our civil rights,” Human Rights Campaign President, Alphonso David said in a press statement.
Adding: “On the first day of Pride Month, a moment of celebration, Governor DeSantis signed a bill into law attacking transgender children—now, on the last day of Pride, we are sending a message to him, and all anti-equality officials, that you cannot target our community without retribution.
“Kids just want to play sports, and are confused about why their state’s leaders, who are elected to represent them, are so determined to hurt them. There is no way to be more clear: transgender children are children; transgender girls are girls; transgender boys are boys; and our community deserves respect, dignity and equal protection under the law.”
We cannot sit idly by as Republican legislatures make transgender youth the newest target of a campaign of hate and ignorance. Equality Florida stands with our partners challenging the cruel and unnecessary Transgender Youth Sports Ban in Florida and elsewhere, said Equality Florida Public Policy Director, Jon Harris Maurer. “Transgender youth are some of the most at-risk in our community, and we will never stop fighting for them.”
Related: 100 Louisiana clergy issues open letter opposing “cynical” anti-trans legislation
Latest
