The first three months of 2023 have seen eight anti-trans bills passed into law.

How do you go about eradicating a group from public life? You start with bureaucracy apparently. Each bill passed until now falls under one of four categories that target different aspects of the lives of trans people. Here is a breakdown of these categories and their implications.

Healthcare

What does it mean to be stripped of your bodily autonomy? To have your body and the decisions around it to be forcibly removed from your authority? HB 1080, which was passed in South Dakota is a textbook example of stripping transgender children of their right to their bodies.The bill states “A healthcare professional may not, for the purpose of attempting to alter the appearance of, or to validate a minor’s perception of, the minor’s sex, if that appearance or perception is inconsistent with the minor’s sex, knowingly: (1) Prescribe or administer any drug to delay or stop normal puberty; (2) Prescribe or administer testosterone, estrogen, or progesterone, in amounts greater than would normally be pro-

By S. Avalon Leonard

duced endogenously in a healthy individual of the same age and sex; … (5) Remove any healthy or non-diseased body part or tissue.” Because of this bill, transgender children have no agency to make informed decisions about their bodies, even with parental support. Their options are either sit and suffer as their bodies fight them at every turn or leave.

Freedom of Expression

“Adult Cabaret performance.” That is what is being banned in public spaces for the purpose of “protecting the children.” But what counts as an adult cabaret performance? Among other things, “Male or Female impersonators… regardless of whether or not performed for consideration,” But where is the line drawn? When does a male or female impersonator not “performing for consideration” become a regular trans person minding their business, and vice versa? With this bill in place and without clear language, it is essentially up to each person’s discretion to decide where transgender people in everyday life fall. So, what is to stop someone from calling the authorities simply because they see a way to eradicate trans people from public life?

Education

Many trans students dealing with unsupportive parents see school as an escape from a difficult home life. But thanks to a new bill that was passed in February, schools and educators in Utah are now being required to out their students to their parents if they attempt to live as an identity that does not “conform with the student’s sex.” Any attempts to validate a student’s gender identity in school (such as name and sex changes on record) that are “inconsistent” with a student’s sex must be done by the parent. According to the bill, this is part of “ensuring parents’ access to information.” Students now have no say in how they present at school and no say on what information stays confidential and private from their parents, leaving them with nearly no place to go.

Civil Rights

This bill, which was passed in West Virginia in early March, essentially makes it near impossible for LGBTQ people in general to sue for wrongful termination if they are fired for religious reasons. The state will not interfere with a medical professional’s refusal to provide medical care or a business owner’s decision to terminate an LGBTQ person’s employment, as it is now deemed to be protected by their right to religious freedom and expression.

It is a fact that through these bills, suicide rates for trans youth will skyrocket. This is not a side effect, nor is it a correlation without causation. Politicians are systemically making it so trans people are not safe, accepted, or celebrated at work, school, or in public.These bills affect cisgender people too because chances are, there are friends and family that are being affected. It is no longer enough to be passively against transphobia, the time to stand with the transgender community is now because the bills have already been passed and if nothing happens, more will follow.