DEVASTATING: Anti-trans bills in Texas and Florida could have deadly results

DEVASTATING: Anti-trans bills in Texas and Florida could have deadly results

Anti-trans bills have passed in two of America’s largest Red states which could have a devastating impact on younger people seeking gender-affirming care.

Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX) is expected to sign a ban that the Texas state legislature passed on Wednesday, which removes gender-affirming care for kids under 18, including hormone treatments and gender-affirming surgeries.

Ron “Don’t Say Gay (Or I’ll Scare You With My Weird Evil Laugh)” DeSantis, the Slytherin mascot of Florida, signed a similar bill as well on Wednesday.

But he imposes felony penalties on any providers who administer gender-affirming care to kids under 18.

And then he reportedly told donors on a phone call that he’s ready to run for President, which means Gov. DeathSantis will be taking his anti-trans “From Gitmo to Gilead” act on the road very soon.

I don’t really know where this idea of “The Drag Queens is coming to turn your kids trans” came from, but it’s really awful to target families dealing with the delicacies of a transitioning teen.

They won’t ban guns to save kids, but they’ll ban hormones which might help even more kids stay alive.

No one can make it make sense.

Despite children under 18 rarely undergoing the transitions which terrify the Trumpers, the GOP is leading a fear campaign full of deliberate disinformation.

Another part of the transphobic hate bill requires teens already receiving hormone treatments to continue but slowly “wean” themselves off the hormones.

Statistics show a sharp increase in suicides among trans teens when they’re unable to receive supportive care to aid their transition or must cease their gender-affirming care.

Trans allies and advocates will be challenging the new laws on an emergency basis in court, arguing that the states are violating parents’ fundamental rights to make medical decisions for their children.

They also say the new bills violate the Constitution by discriminating against transgender children.

But they have a long road of future challenges ahead of them.

Florida alone has already passed more anti-LGBTQ+ legislation this session than it did in the seven years prior, Vox reported on Thursday.

Texas is on track to pass more than double the number of similarly anti-LGBTQ+ laws than it did over that same period, Cathryn Oakley, state legislative director and senior counsel at the Human Rights Campaign, told Vox.

No one backing these bills has ever been able to justify why they think they have any jurisdiction over another human’s body, but 2023.

Similar to how they treat all communities they see as Other, the anti-trans Republican Party has unilaterally and inexplicably declared war on the transgender community in an effort to scapegoat them amid Donald Trump’s myriad legal scandals.

Trans activists and allies flocked to social media to voice their anger at the anti-human bills.

*THIS IS AN OPINION COLUMN THAT SOLELY REPRESENTS THE OPINIONS OF TARA DUBLIN. HOORAY FOR THE FREE PRESS!*

Other hot takes by Tara Dublin can be found on TikTok and Twitter @taradublinrocks.

Tara Dublin

Tara Dublin is a woefully unrepresented writer who thinks more people would read her cool rock & roll love story inspired by Dave Grohl than any ghostwritten GOP crapbook, agents & publishers. Follow Tara on Twitter @taradublinrocks