Louisiana legislators have advanced 3 discriminatory bills targeting LGBTQ youth. The extreme legislation passed by the Senate included a Gender Affirming Care Ban (HB 648), a “Don’t Say LGBTQ+” Bill (HB 466) & a Pronoun Restriction Bill (HB 81) which will be sent to Gov. John Bel Edwards for signature or veto. The Gender Affirming Care Ban (HB 648) would ban physicians from providing age-appropriate, best practice health care for transgender minors under the age of 18. The “Don’t Say LGBTQ+” Bill (HB 466) prevents students & educators across the state from having & providing safe, inclusive classrooms. The Pronoun Restriction Bill (HB 81) allows schools to forcibly out & intentionally misgender transgender & non-binary students. Cathryn Oakley Human Rights Campaign State Legislative Director & Senior Counsel stated, “From doctors’ offices to classrooms, Louisiana’s extremist legislators show no shame in assaulting the freedoms of those different from them. Blocking teachers from providing the safe & inclusive spaces that LGBTQ+ youth so desperately need is an unconscionable act. There is absolutely nothing inappropriate about being LGBTQ+ or in acknowledging LGBTQ+ issues & people. Furthermore, denying transgender & non-binary youth access to best-practice, life-saving medical care puts their lives in very real danger. These bills are a desperate & cruel effort by radical politicians in Louisiana to marginalize & erase the LGBTQ+ community, particularly transgender youth. The Human Rights Campaign strongly condemns these discriminatory bills & calls on Gov. Bel Edwards to veto them.” So far in 2023 more than 530 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced in statehouses across the country. A total of 74 pieces of legislation have been enacted into law this year & more than 225 of those bills would specifically restrict the rights of our transgender community.
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