Weekly Update: Anti-LGBTQ+ Conversion Therapy Heads to Supreme Court, Help Save SMYRC, and More
Welcome to Basic Rights Oregon’s weekly newsletter, where we update you on the LGBTQ+ news you should know, things you can do, and ways you can help. If you have questions, reach out here. To receive this newsletter as a weekly email, signup for email updates at the bottom of our Contact Us page. BRO’s work—including this newsletter—is funded entirely by our supporters. Donate here.
Happy Friday, you lovely LGBTQ-ties and accomplices! The Basic Rights Oregon crew is still feeling a buzz from our Lobby Day this week. Our amazing group of volunteers met with 21 legislators to advocate for anti-book banning legislation, more funding for the state to process civil rights complaints, insurance coverage for IVF, housing discrimination protections for immigrants and more. We also thanked our pro-equality leaders for working to ensure that no anti-LGBTQ+ legislation will pass this year in Oregon.
A group of BRO staff and volunteers met with Senator Lew Frederick, a champion of anti-book banning legislation, at our Lobby Day. Check out more Lobby Day photos here!
Here’s what you need to know in LGBTQ+ news this week:
You may have come across claims from anti-trans interest groups and politicians that Europe has been “pulling back” on gender-affirming care access for young people. But as the great trans journalist Erin Reed reports, that’s not true—in fact, new guidelines in several European countries are reaffirming the importance of gender-affirming care for trans youth. It can certainly feel like our rights are being attacked from every angle, but let this serve as a reminder that they can’t stop our progress; they can only stall it.
The red state-level attack on LGBTQ+ rights continues: Some North Dakota lawmakers tried to direct the state’s Supreme Court to strike down the state’s marriage equality laws, but a bipartisan group of state senators blocked the effort. In Texas, extremists introduced legislation that would put trans people at risk of felony charges for “gender identity fraud”—but this bill also isn’t expected to pass. Finally, some Montana Republicans joined Democrats to oppose bills that would have ripped trans kids away from their parents, and banned drag shows and Pride marches.
It’s a small relief to see that there are still lines even most conservatives won’t cross when it comes to endangering queer and trans people. At the same time, the fact that these bills are even being introduced shows how emboldened these extremists feel right now. Which just means we have to keep making noise and showing up.
Oregon is one of 20 US states that currently bans harmful anti-LGBTQ+ conversion therapy for minors. This week, the US Supreme Court indicated it would hear a case out of Colorado challenging the legality of these bans. This could have terrible consequences for young people in Oregon and across the country—but remember that we don’t have a ruling yet, and we won’t until October at the earliest.
We’ll end the news roundup with some hopeful news: A federal judge has ruled that a Florida school did nothing wrong by agreeing to not force trans and questioning students out of the closet to their parents. We’re seeing state-level legislation across the country attempting to force schools to always out trans kids to their families—who may or may not be supportive or even safe people—so this is a good sign that those bills might not be legal.
Here are three action items you can take this weekend:
SMYRC, an incredible LGBTQ+ youth services program in Portland, is facing potentially devastating budget cuts from Multnomah County. If you live in MultCo, follow the instructions in this post to help save SMYRC!
Oregon Senate Bill 722, which will limit landlords’ ability to use AI tools to jack up your rent, has a hearing at the Capitol next week. We know LGBTQ+ Oregonians are disproportionately impacted by high rents and evictions, and we also know that everyone deserves affordable housing.
Want to support this bill? You can sign up to testify in-person or online here, or submit written testimony by next Friday here. You can use this helpful testimony template to format your testimony, and you can also have BRO proof-read and submit the testimony on your behalf by emailing it to organizing@basicrights.org by Thursday.
Our good friends at the ACLU are hiring a new organizing associate to work on the Equal Rights for All ballot measure campaign. Feel free to share this opportunity with folks who might be interested, or apply yourself!