Transgender rights activists occupied the Rotunda of the Oklahoma State Capitol on Monday to protest Republicans’ push to limit so-called gender-affirmation care in the state.
About 150 people, many holding signs and banners, chanted “translife difference” before a new legislative session in which GOP lawmakers have already filed bills aimed at curbing treatments like hormone replacement therapy. Had to reduce. The Oklahoma Daily reported..
One of the new proposals, Senate Bill 129will soon ban health care professionals in the state from referring anyone under the age of 26 for gender confirmation care, including both surgical and non-surgical interventions. .
second bill, Senate Bill 252which aims to prevent anyone under the age of 18 from undergoing sex reassignment surgery.
The bills are part of a recent wave of gender-related proposals in the state, including the signing of a law last year by Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt that would have banned trans women from participating in women’s school sports.
In his State of the State address Monday, Stitt called for a statewide ban on gender-affirmation surgeries and other treatments for minors. Oklahoma Daily said.
Trans rights activists told the outlet Monday that the proposed legislation is misguided, and will likely have fatal consequences for Oklahoma’s LGBTQIA+ community.
“Legislators fear the trans community as if trans people are coming for their children, but in reality, trans people just want to live and mind their own business,” said one protester, identified as Only the name of the lane has been said.
He also claimed that limiting access to non-surgical treatments would also be harmful.
“For a lot of trans people, the little things like [hormone replacement therapy] Just help trans people feel like themselves,” she explained.
Other protesters claimed that limiting access to such resources threatened the mental health of trans people.
Oh A recent survey by the Trevor Project It found that 59% of trans men, 48% of trans women and 53% of non-binary people had considered suicide in the past year. Columbia University researchHowever, gender-affirming care was found to consistently improve mental health outcomes for trans and non-binary youth.
“Working to ban HRT and other trans healthcare is active genocide,” Benjamin Patterson, a trans man, told the Oklahoma Daily.
“People aren’t going to live to 26 to get it. For many of us, it’s one of the only things that can help us feel at home in our bodies.
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