Arizona’s Democratic Governor, Katie Hobbs, vetoed a bill that would have barred schools from referring to transgender students by names or pronouns matching their gender identity.
Under the bill, employees or independent contractors of a school district or charter school would be prohibited from knowingly calling a student under the age of 18 by a pronoun other than the one matching their assigned sex at birth, reports the Associated Press.
School staff would also be prevented from referring to the student by any name besides the first or middle name listed on their school records, although nicknames rooted in a student’s given name would be acceptable.
Opponents of the bill argued that students should have the freedom to be referred to by whatever names or pronouns they wish, since they all enjoy a right to freedom of expression.
Furthermore, opponents argue that just because a student adopts pronouns that do not match their assigned sex at birth does not mean they are being fast-tracked for surgical interventions.
For example, a student who identifies as nonbinary and uses “they/them” pronouns may not experience gender dysphoria to the point where they would seek to medically transition; rather, they may just want to have their identity respected.
State Sen. John Kavanagh (R-Fountain Hills), the bill’s sponsor, previously claimed the bill was about making sure parents were aware that their child wanted to identify by another name or pronoun.
“Parents have a right to know if their children are in psychological turmoil,” Kavanagh said, noting that youth may feel confused, depressed, anxious, or suicidal due to their gender dysphoria, and may require mental health care to better deal with those problems.
“Parents can’t get their children the counseling or therapy needed if their school is hiding this information from them.”
But, as the Arizona Capitol Times notes, nothing in the legislation would have actually required teachers or schools to report a child’s dysphoria to parents. Rather, it simply would have barred teachers from referring to students with their preferred names or pronouns, and teachers with personal religious or moral beliefs or convictions would be empowered to refuse student requests.
Only if a teacher agreed to a student’s request was there a requirement to notify a parent and get consent, just as they would for any other issue, such as going on a field trip or allowing their children to take an aspirin at school.
Kavanagh also argued that his legislation contained an exception allowing teachers to use a student’s preferred pronoun if a parent gave written permission.
But even that provision was flawed, as the legislation would have allowed a teacher to override a parent’s wishes based on the teacher’s “religious or moral convictions.”
Just prior to Republicans voting to approve the measure on a party-line vote, State Rep. Lorena Austin (D-Mesa), who identifies as the first nonbinary, gender-nonconforming state representative, pleaded with her colleagues to consider the bill’s ramifications.
“I can tell you as a young person, if this bill had come through when I was in high school, it would have terrified me,” Austin said during debate on the bill. “I was already terrified of knowing that I would not be accepted in the society as such.”
Kavanagh slammed Hobbs for vetoing the bill earlier this week.
“For the governor to turn a blind eye to what’s happening is reckless and irresponsible. I would expect more from a former social worker,” he said.
But Hobbs denounced the bill as an attack on transgender children.
“Instead of coming up with new ways to target and isolate our children, we should be working together to create an Arizona where everyone has the freedom to be who they are without fear of harassment or judgment,” she said in a statement.
Hobbs also thanked Austin for “telling their story and speaking their truth” during debate on the bill, and sought to re-emphasize Austin’s words to young people that “you have every right to be who you are.” Hobbs added, “I will veto every bill that aims to attack and harm children.”
Kavanagh also sponsored another bill, which passed along party lines, requiring schools to create “reasonable accommodations” — often a single-user or unisex restroom, such as the kind that Virginia student Gavin Grimm was forced to use by his school system — for any student who refuses to use restrooms matching their assigned sex at birth.
But despite the bill’s passage, the Senate GOP leadership has not yet sent it to Hobbs, who is expected to veto it.
University of South Carolina women's basketball coach Dawn Staley grabbed headlines this past weekend when she weighed in on the side of allowing transgender athletes to participate in sports.
On April 6, the day before her Lady Gamecocks were to play in the NCAA Division I "March Madness" Tournament Championship game against Iowa, Staley -- who freely offers her opinion on any topic, regardless if her comments may offend some people -- was asked about her position on transgender athletes competing in women's sports.
The question came from Dan Zaksheske, a reporter for OutKick, a website with a strong conservative viewpoint that markets itself as an "everyman" alternative to mainstream sports news outlets.
Two New York men have been charged with drug possession and distribution in connection with the death of Cecilia Gentili, a prominent New York-based transgender activist.
The arrest was announced in an April 1 news release from the office of Breon Peace, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.
"Cecilia Gentili, a prominent activist and leader of the New York transgender community, was tragically poisoned in her Brooklyn home from fentanyl-laced heroin," Peace said in a statement. "Fentanyl is a public health crisis. Our Office will spare no effort in the pursuit of justice for the many New Yorkers who have lost loved ones due to this lethal drug."
A city council member for a U.S.-Mexico border town was overwhelmingly voted out of office in a recall election after she came out as transgender.
Calexico Council Member and former Mayor Raúl Ureña -- who uses all pronouns but prefers "she" -- was first elected to the city council in 2020, at age 23.
She was hailed in recent years as a progressive hero challenging the political status quo in the town of about 38,000, located in California, just across the border from Mexicali, Mexico.
In 2020, Ureña had succeeded former Council Member David Romero, who went to federal prison after being convicted in a bribery scandal.
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