Florida Guts Trans Rights

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🗓️ 17 May 2023

⏱️ 10 minutes

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Summary

At least fourteen states in the US have passed laws or policies that limit or restrict gender-affirming care for young people. Republican lawmakers claim the bills are meant to protect kids, but most medical groups say the treatment is safe, effective and potentially live-saving.

Even so, Republican leaders like Texas governor Greg Abbot compare gender-affirming care to child abuse. Meanwhile trans people, parents, and their supporters have protested outside of Republican controlled statehouses across the country.

Florida has targeted gender-affirming care more than most other states. And on Wednesday, Republican Governor Ron DeSantis signed the latest such bill into law. It's gotten to the point where some trans youth are leaving the state, rather than living under the ban.

With reporting from WUFS's Stephanie Columbini and WFSU's Regan McCarthy.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	It's become a dominant trend in red states.
0:07.7	Republican leaders passing laws that limit or ban gender affirming medical care for transgender
0:12.6	youth.
0:13.6	Florida is poised to ban gender dysphoria treatments for all my life.
0:17.4	Beginning next year, I know doctors could go to prison for up to 10 years.
0:20.5	And the Arkansas legislators there just passed their own bill making it easier to sue
0:24.8	doctors.
0:25.8	Montana has joined more than a dozen states that are banning gender affirming medical
0:29.7	care for transgender minors.
0:31.3	At least 14 states in the US have passed laws or policies that limit or restrict gender
0:36.3	affirming care for young people.
0:37.9	And the fervor around this has only grown according to NPR's Melissa Block who's been
0:41.7	tracking it.
0:42.7	I spoke with a lawyer in Florida who fights these bills and she compared it to a game
0:46.2	of whack a mole.
0:47.9	This year alone, we've seen about 83 bills related to gender affirming care introduced
0:52.7	all around the country.
0:54.2	Doctors appointed by the governor to state boards call such treatment risky and experimental.
0:59.6	It does go against the consensus from dozens of major US medical groups.
1:04.6	They say these treatments are time-tested, effective and potentially life-saving.
1:09.5	Even so, Republican leaders like Texas Governor Greg Abbott compared gender affirming care
1:14.0	to child abuse.
	...

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