Hundreds of LGBTQ advocates and parents of transgender kids have packed the Texas Capitol ahead of the House’s expected consequential vote on a bill that would banBefore the House convened Tuesday morning, the crowd weaved up a staircase as they filled the hallway outside the chamber. Many donned rainbow clothes and flags and waved signs to show their support for trans Texans. The Rev.
As the House was convening, LGBTQ Texans and their allies began entering the gallery overlooking the chamber floor, where the debate is scheduled to occur Tuesday. Some also stayed outside for a rally at the nearby indoor rotunda, which saw the dropping of a massive banner saying, “Let trans kids grow up,” from the second floor.
would prohibit trans youth from getting puberty blockers and hormone therapy — care that medical groups say is vital to their mental health. The bill is a legislative priority for the Republican Party of Texas, whose platform opposes “all efforts to validate transgender identity.” The Senate has already passed a version of the bill, and a majority of state representatives — all of them Republicans — support the measure.
This is the furthest this proposed ban has advanced in the lower chamber, which has often served as a moderating force on legislation targeting how LGBTQ Texans live. It is among a bevy of bills lawmakers are pushing this session thatSB 14 proposes prohibiting all trans kids in Texas from being able to get puberty blockers, hormone therapies and other health care in order to transition.
As is the case in the Senate, supporters of SB 14 in the House dispute the science and research behind transition-related medical treatments. They also portray doctors who provide this care as opportunists capitalizing on a “social contagion” and misleading parents into approving treatments for kids who may later regret them.