Louisiana - Trans doctor spends life savings, fights insurance dead-naming to keep clinic open. Insurance companies refused to reimburse claims for Tiffany Najberg’s clinic since she legally changed her name two years ago. Dr. Najberg spent $200,000 of her own money to keep the clinic open, which serves trans youth from neighboring states where restrictions on gender-affirming care have been enacted. Missouri - Lawmakers consider extreme school censorship bill. SB134 would ban all discussions relating to sexual orientation and gender identity in schools, K-12, except lessons taught by licensed mental health providers who have permission from a student's parent or guardian. Montana - Bill introduced to protect students who misgender their trans classmates from reprimand. HB361 would force Montana schools to adopt policies declaring that intentionally using a transgender classmate’s legal name or pronouns associated with their sex assigned at birth is not discriminatory and cannot be punished. Opponents of the bill argue this will mean increased bullying for trans students. North Carolina - State Senate passes so-called “Parents’ Bill of Rights” on party-line vote. SB49 bans curriculum covering gender identity, sexual activity, or sexuality in kindergarten through fourth grade. It also requires teachers to out trans and non-binary students to their parents. Oklahoma - Protest for trans rights held inside Oklahoma Capitol. The protest, which was organized to oppose bills banning gender-affirming care in the state, took place ahead of Gov. Stitt’s State of the State address. Virginia - State Senate votes to repeal same-sex marriage ban. On February 6th, the State Senate approved Join Resolution 242 on a bipartisan 25-14 vote. This is the first step in repealing the constitutional amendment adopted in 2006 which bans same-sex marriage, though the ban is unenforceable since the 2015 SCOTUS ruling in Obergefell. under state law while federal law still permits same-sex marriage in Virginia. Virginia House passes two anti-trans bills. The House of Delegates passed HB1387 and HB2432 on party-line votes. The former would ban trans athletes from competing in school sports and the latter would forcibly out trans students to their parents. Washington - Tri-Cities Pride canceled for 2023. Tri-Cities Pride President Carly Coburn said the celebration would return in 2024, following a year of reorganizing as a nonprofit. |