(C) Verite News New Orleans This story was originally published by Verite News New Orleans and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Anti-trans bills cause fear, sadness in Louisiana’s trans community [1] ['Drew Costley', 'More Drew Costley', 'Verite News', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow', 'Class', 'Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus', 'Display Inline', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar', 'Where Img', 'Height Auto Max-Width'] Date: 2024-05-31 Peyton Rose Michelle, executive director of Louisiana Trans Advocates, has a lot in common with Gov. Jeff Landry. They’re both Cajun politicians. They both grew up and went to school in St. Martin Parish. And they both have lived in Lafayette for long periods of time and have strong ties to the city. But Michelle is transgender and advocates for greater rights for her community, while Landry is cisgender and is poised to sign legislation into law that will curb the rights of transgender people in the state. And where Landry might celebrate the bills becoming law, Michelle is rueful about them. “I deserve to live here without being traumatized through it,” Michelle told Verite News. Transgender and gender nonconforming people throughout the state, like Michelle, are feeling fear, pain and sadness as these bills – House Bills 121, 122 and 608 – make their way through the stateLegislature and to the governor’s desk. House Bill 121, which prohibits public school employees from using the names and pronouns that match students’ gender identities and protects employees who refuse to use students’ chosen names and pronouns, is still making its way through the legislature but is expected to pass. House Bill 122, which prohibits public school employees from discussing sexual orientation or gender identity with students unless that discourse is part of government-approved curricula, has passed the legislature and is awaiting Landry’s signature. And House Bill 608, which was sent to Landry for his signature on May 24, defines biological sex for the purpose of forcing transgender people to use public restrooms, domestic violence shelters, jail, prisons and other public facilities that match their assigned sex at birth. The bills add to a barrage of legislative attacks on trans rights in Louisiana over the last few years, which include banning transgender women and girls from participation in school sports and doctors from administering gender-affirming care. And they’ve got trans rights activists in Louisiana reeling to figure out how to help themselves and their community survive. “The next steps are complicated when you’re in a state that cares so little for the community,” Michelle said. ‘Not easy by any means’ Quest Riggs works with the Queer and Trans Community Action Project, a New Orleans-based activist group. Riggs said it’s been shocking to watch Republicans advance these bills through the legislature. “Going into the legislative session, we were anticipating these types of bills to pass because of the Republican supermajority,” she said. “Of course, in real time, it’s a painful process to witness.” The Queer and Trans Community Action Project is part of a coalition of trans advocacy organizations pushing the city of New Orleans to pass “sanctuary” laws that would protect trans rights in the city in the face of state-level restrictions. The proposed policies would be similar to ones adopted by New Orleans and other cities throughout the United States to protect undocumented immigrants from federal policies and enforcement strategies and improve their access to social services. After Republicans started advancing these bills through the state legislature and advocates began pushing for trans sanctuary policies, the New Orleans City Council adopted a resolution in April stating that the city will do all it can to be a safe place for LGBTQIA+ people. But the council has yet to enact more tangible protections. “So far the City Council has only been willing to make symbolic gestures towards queer and trans rights and have even been very quiet about the [legislative] attacks,” Riggs said. “There’s a lot of progress to be made on the local level, especially considering that there’s City Council elections next year.” Michelle said Louisiana Trans Advocates is trying to make sure that transgender people know their rights in the context of both this new state legislation and Title IX regulations that the U.S. Department of Education issued in April to provide protections for transgender students. There’s a “legal gray area,” she said, since the state legislation and federal regulations contradict each other. “We want to make sure that our community understands…what’s happening, what the rules are, what they can and can’t do, and if something – God forbid – happens, that they know how to take care of the legal ramifications or whatever it may be,” she said. “We’re just trying our best to support our community through it, which is not easy by any means.” As rights for transgender Louisianians diminish as a result of this legislation, community spaces and organizations are likely to become more important than they have been in the past. Ka’Sha Fenceroy, an organizer for Trans Queer Youth NOLA, said that while the state can pass laws regulating how public school employees refer to trans youth, lawmakers can’t regulate mutual aid groups like hers. “We’re not going to change the way we operate. We’re a queer and trans-serving organization,” they said. “You come to the space looking for solidarity and a community of people, folks who look like you or reflect some type of walk of life that is similar to yours. [We’re] not gonna take that away from you.” The NOLA Public Schools district also isn’t keen on the state stripping rights from its LGBTQIA+ students and employees. In 2022, responding to state legislation banning transgender women and girls from participating in public school sports, the Orleans Parish School Board passed a resolution stating that the school system is fully committed to “equality, inclusion and acceptance” of its students and employees of all sexual orientations, gender identities and gender expressions. “House Bill 121, House Bill 122, and House Bill 608 pose a significant threat to the inclusion, safety, and equality here in our community,” said Taslin Alfonzo, a spokesperson for NOLA Public Schools. “We express our opposition to these bills, as well as a deep concern for what the potential outcomes may be here for our students and educators.” Leave Louisiana? Since Louisiana’s ban on youth gender-affirming health care went into effect at the beginning of the year, families have begun seeking that care in other states. At least one top doctor has left the state and LGBTQIA+ rights advocates have said families are moving out of state because of the ban. Michelle said people regularly ask her if she’ll leave Louisiana in the face of heightened legislative attacks on transgender people. She tells them no. Landry, her fellow St. Martin Parish native, said in 2022 that those who don’t like Louisiana’s laws could leave the state. At the time, he was referring to the state’s abortion ban, but Michelle reflected on that statement while talking to Verite News about the anti-trans legislation. “It’s sad that his solution for me would be to leave Louisiana even though I’m a competent worker that contributes…positively to my community,” Michelle said. “I participate in government and I care, I vote, I pay taxes, I do all the things that we are supposed to do in their eyes, and yet it is not good enough because I am trans. And that is apparently enough to counteract all of the things I do as a good citizen.” Related Republish This Story Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license. [END] --- [1] Url: https://veritenews.org/2024/05/31/anti-trans-legislation-louisiana-jeff-landry/ Published and (C) by Verite News New Orleans Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 US. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/veritenews/