Friend,

June is Pride Month - a time set aside to honor the Stonewall
uprising, which launched the movement to end discriminatory laws
against LGBTQ people - and to remember the many important
cultural and legislative victories since that pivotal summer in 1969.

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This year, the celebration occurs under the cloud of more than 125
anti-LGBTQ bills that have been introduced in state legislatures, many
targeting children who identify as transgender by denying them access
to lifesaving medical treatment, banning them from participating in
sports or using the restroom. This is up markedly from last year when
more than 40 such bills were introduced.

In fact, 2021 has set a record for the number of anti-trans
legislative efforts.

It's important to understand that the bulk of these laws are
copycat bills developed and pushed by known anti-LGBTQ hate groups
rather than legitimate need or public concern. These usual suspects
have played a role in previous anti-equality fights, like North
Carolina's 2016 "bathroom bill," a failed effort The
Associated Press said could cost the state $3.76 billion over 10
years. 

Idaho's HB 500, the first anti-transgender sports bill to be
passed through any state's legislative chamber and be signed
into law in 2020, targets children and was written by the Alliance
Defending Freedom (ADF), which the Southern Poverty Law Center has
designated as an anti-LGBTQ hate group. Already this year, Alabama,
Arkansas, Florida, Mississippi, Montana and Tennessee have enacted
similar laws, with more expected to follow before the end of the
legislative season. And Arkansas has become the first state ever to
enact a ban on medical treatments for transgender youth, a law also
pushed by ADF.

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The SPLC designated ADF as a hate group after its support of
recriminalizing consensual sex between LGBTQ adults and its defense of
state-sanctioned sterilization of trans people.

These efforts also go hard against public opinion: Two-thirds of
Americans oppose these types of bills, according to a recent PBS
NewsHour/NPR/Marist College survey. But after the Supreme Court struck
down marriage equality bans in 2015, these groups turned to separating
the "T" from LGBTQ in hopes of solidifying their base and
entrenching hate against a lesser-known and less understood group.

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Tragically, it's a tactic that's feeding violence against
transgender people. According to the Human Rights Campaign, last year
was the deadliest on record - at least 44 transgender and gender
non-conforming people were violently killed. Black transgender women
continue to be disproportionately affected by lethal violence.

Amid such ignorance and hatred, it is all the more important to
celebrate Pride Month by embracing and uplifting our transgender and
nonbinary community members. Here are a few suggestions for
celebrating Pride Month and supporting the ongoing fight for LGBTQ
rights: 
* Each of us has a personal responsibility to make our communities
more transgender inclusive and welcoming. Cultural
marginalization means we are maintaining spaces where
transgender people are at a higher risk of violence simply for
existing.

* Normalize the use of preferred pronouns by indicating yours and
refuse to allow anyone to misgender trans men or women.
Misgendering is the first tactic in most transphobic propaganda
efforts.

* Recognize and call out disinformation. Media Matters found that
Fox News has run almost 100 "fearmongering" segments
this year, outright lying "about best practice health care
for trans youth." Reframing trans rights as a threat to
women is a lie, and it's critical that we advocate for
transgender people as equal members of society deserving of
dignity, respect, opportunity and protection.

* Refuse to allow anti-LGBTQ laws to pass unchecked. Elected
officials - local, state and federal - have an
obligation to all of their constituents. We can educate
ourselves and others about the discrimination and violence that
transgender people face.

* Raise your Voice. Urge lawmakers to specifically support the
Equality Act, which amends the 1964 Civil Rights Act to protect
LGBTQ people by name and to explicitly prevent discrimination
based on sexual orientation and gender identity. 

Sincerely, 

The Southern Poverty Law Center 

  

 


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