24 Comments
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Ellen Adele Harper's avatar

Thank the goddess some of them can think critically.

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Brianna Amore's avatar

It's certainly rare, but welcome.

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Leah Abram's avatar

The Montana Judiciary is tied with the Oklahoma Judiciary as my favorite red-state court system whose opinions I love!

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Nicola A's avatar

How does Montana have a judiciary with souls? Republican corruption spreads like a fungus, what checks keep them out of there?

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Stephanie Shea's avatar

Why can't Texas be like Montana? Texas is stuck with the tool, Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk.

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Kit's avatar

"In support of its arguments regarding rational basis/middle tier scrutiny, the State cites FBI crime statistics for Montana showing the percentages of aggravated assaults, rapes, murders, and criminal sexual contact offenses committed by males in contrast to female victims."

That was in fact the only "evidence" provided to support their case. Soooo ... trans women are inherently dangerous because they are believed to belong to a class of people who are so dangerous that scrapping the privacy of all trans women is justified. If you follow this razor thin argument to its logical conclusion, you arrive at the argument that all cis men should be removed from public life without due process, for all of our safety.

Obviously completely irrational.

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Kit's avatar

Oh, and I was very happy to read this good news.

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Mike Gelt's avatar

Thank goodness for the justices except for those in Texas

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Shirley Gauthier she/her's avatar

I do not even come close to believing that the haters believe themselves that their hate legislation protects women. Over the years I have heard so many jokes about how women always seem to go to the bathroom together. It seems like such a good idea now for safety reasons. No matter what the the judge rules my it will take more than that for this ally to visit or spend money in Montana.

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Brianna Amore's avatar

I've literally never had a single problem in a women's bathroom and I've been using them for 12 years now. I do worry a bit when I'm in a not-so-friendly state like Florida but as long as I'm not out in the sticks I never have a problem.

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Kassandra F.'s avatar

Yay! More good news! I want to be able to visit Glacier NP, until all of the anti trans laws are overturned I won’t feel safe there.

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Jan S. Gephardt's avatar

This looks to me like a judge who pays more attention to the facts of the case than partisan talking points. That's the kind of attitude that we need more of!

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joy Dunne's avatar

Good news!

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Anne's avatar

I may someday visit Montana, now.

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Stephanie Shea's avatar

Gotta love Montana! Never saw that coming a year ago.

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Jean Bryant's avatar

Jon Tester lost after a LONG TIME being the most respected and effective senator for Montana. I thought that was the end to one of the most rational respectful "kinda sorta balanced" States... This tells me yáll are still using your knogin's

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Veronica Erin's avatar

Since Montana is primarily outhouses, what’s the outhouse policy?

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Tia's avatar

I am so tired of society attacking the trans community.

Why can’t the haters just leave them alone? Let us all live together.

If they have issues, then deal with it!!

there is no need to continuously pass bills against the trans community.

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Lise D's avatar

“Transgender Montanans have been subjected to such a history of purposeful unequal treatment and have been relegated to such a position of political powerlessness as to command extraordinary protection from the majoritarian political process,” Vannatta noted.

GodDAMN that's a beautifully crafted sentence.

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Tommy Lamont's avatar

Thanks, S. Baum, for this news story. And thank goodness that this judge concluded what is obvious to trans people and many other minorities, that anti-trans rhetoric and legislation is driven by irrational animus.

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