My Fellow Young Democrats-

In a letter penned to his church community, Bishop Michael F. Burbridge of Arlington made heinous statements about trans folks and even trans children, where he stated that “no one is transgender.” Not only is this statement harmful to the hundreds of thousands of trans people that live in this country, many of whom live here in Arlington, but it is categorically false. Bishop Burbridge preaches Jesus’s teachings of love and acceptance of one another and our neighbors, yet fails to extend the simple acknowledgement of humanity and existence to our trans brothers, sisters, and siblings.

I went to Catholic School growing up and I consider myself to be a person of faith. And I remember it being taught that Matthew 22:39 says “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” But nowhere in all of these books does it give you the right to determine how someone can identify themselves nor does it deny you from accepting that person for who they truly are.

If Bishop Burbridge wants to preach Jesus’s teachings of love and acceptance of one another and our neighbors, why does that not apply or extend to our trans folks here in Arlington or in the US? There are thousands of people out there who this statement is harmful to.

You shouldn’t just preach the words of scripture, you should practice them. And if you truly want to say that you love all God’s creation, then you cannot categorically deny one’s existence. Bishop Burbridge should look inward and find that acceptance and love that is written on these pages that he says all people should strictly adhere to. Because trans people exist and trans lives matter.

To the trans people living here in Arlington County and in the United States and to the LGTBQ+ population at large: We see you. We hear you. We accept you and we will continue to push all of our community to do the same. As allies, we will continue to do the work to make an Arlington that accepts all.

After all the United States is not a theocracy and one religion should not govern the way we pass laws or conduct our society and having said that:

With the news of this week regarding Texas and their limiting access to almost all abortion and how the Supreme Court let it slide, we know what is the most at stake right now. The only way to protect Roe v. Wade from a packed conservative SCOTUS is to fight like hell in the State Legislatures and Virginia is the first line of defense.

We here at the Arlington Young Democrats know that Abortion is Healthcare. Abortion is healthcare. Plan and simple. It is not always an easy choice that one wants to make but in some cases, it is a medically necessary and oftentimes very emotional choice. And it is clear, with Glenn Youngkin in the Governor’s mansion, that the regressive and dangerous laws we see in Texas and throughout Republican held seats will come here. We cannot afford that.

So it is up to us in this room, to let Youngkin know that he may hide behind vague words and limited public stances but Virginians will know the truth about his radical Right-Wing, regressive stances by November. We can not afford anything else. We have to continue to work as hard as we can to come together and elect Democrats up and down the ballot in every race here in Arlington and throughout Virginia.

We have to elect Terry McAuliffe for Governor, Hala Ayala for Lt. Governor, and Mark Herring for Attorney General because the stakes are too high and we know that Democrats will deliver on this issue. And this time when Terry is Governor, we’re going to make sure that he won’t have to veto any more bills that will limit the right to choose because we are going to expand our majority here in the House of Delegates.

If you don’t want Virginia to look like Texas, I’m asking you to knock on those doors. If you want to believe that the only person who can dictate your body is yourself in Virginia, I’m asking you to make a few phone calls. If you want Virginia to continue to be a safe haven and a leader in the South for abortion and reproductive health, get out there and elect democrats up and down the ballot. Reproductive rights are on the ballot this November and we are going to fight like hell to protect them for all Virginians.

If you want to help your local Democratic ticket, remember to buy your Gold Card and come out to the Labor Day Chili Cook off on Monday 09/06 at 2PM!

Democratically yours,

Matt Royer

P.S. Boycott Nabisco and Pass the Richard Trumka PRO Act