Crowds support Trans kids in Charleston hearing
In an appeal to the same ostensibly "pro-life" stance of Republican lawmakers in West Virginia, crowds of parents, doctors, and pro-Trans advocates gathered in Charleston on Thursday last week to entreat their representatives to save the lives of Trans children by voting against a bill that would ban gender-affirming care for minors.

"You all like to use rhetoric about not killing children as a justification for passing legislation, as you did this summer," said United Methodist pastor Rev. Jenny Williams, referring to the state's vote to ban abortion last year. "You will kill children if you pass this. If you oppose the killing of children like you say you do, I would hope that you apply your principles consistently."

Paula Lepp, a parent of a Trans child and a Christian herself, invoked the teachings of Jesus, saying, "The bottom line is this: I would rather have a live daughter than a dead son, and this bill puts that at risk."

Meanwhile Braden Roten, one of the two constituents to show up in support of the bill, dismissed the crowds as a loud minority and threatened, "If you don't vote on this bill, we will vote you out."

Women's Health Center Communications Director Kaylen Barker, who is Queer, told the legislature to "leave us alone. Find something useful to do with your time, like fix the damn roads."

Missouri one-ups Florida with "disrespectful bill"
Missouri has joined Florida, Kansas, and North Carolina on the growing list of states targeting discussions of sexual orientation and gender identity in public schools. Introduced by Republican state Sen. Mike Moon, Missouri's new proposal would go even farther than Florida, allowing only mental health care providers to cover LGBTQ topics — and even then, only with parents' permission.

"The bill follows the lead of Florida's 'Don't Say Gay' bill but does so with broader impact and implications than any bill being considered in the nation," said Executive Director Katy Erker-Lynch of Promo during a committee hearing.

The bill "systematically and very specifically erases LGBTQ identity and presence from classrooms," she went on. "The fact that the bill was dignified by being given a Senate committee [hearing] should be appalling to any person paying attention and a wake-up call to those who are not."

Democratic state Sen. Greg Razer, who serves with Moon on the same Senate education committee, called the measure the "most disrespectful bill" he has seen since taking office, one reason being that it would keep teachers in his district from telling students he's Missouri's only openly Gay state senator.

"What is so offensive about me that it can't be talked about in schools?" Razer asked Moon.