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I am so grateful what you do as a mother of a transgender woman. I am happy that she is living as her true self as it has made her happy for the first time in her life. She said even though she is fearful, she doesn't think she would be alive if she couldn't be who and present as she was meant to be.

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Absolutely incredible speech I was riveted for every word.

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author

It was incredible watching it live.

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Mar 2, 2023Liked by Erin Reed

I can only imagine the horror show that will be the language of the final bill somehow only pinpointing trans people in some horrific degrading way.

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Mar 2, 2023Liked by Erin Reed

Great reporting once again!

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My teenage son is trans, and so for the first time I am following legislative processes, to keep track of which states my family can legally exist in. Your work is indispensable.

So one proponent of the bill gets up and says that they just need a law they can use to charge people if they need to. Another says basically "we want kids to be safe, so we have to pass *something*." And then the sponsor, Mr. "I'm not a lawyer," says that no prosecutor would bring charges against anyone who just wanted to use the bathroom.

So, in sum: don't worry, we won't prosecute the good ones.

Is it sophistry, or are they serious? Do they know nothing about our country and its legal system? Are these the kinds of atrocious arguments that typically get bills passed? The speeches against the bill were truly inspiring, but as a whole, this is utterly terrifying.

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It's...something. But it feels like we're cheering over crumbs. Like "At least they didn't pass the _worst_ bathroom bill in the country." Things are so bad that this not passing basically on a technicality (i.e. missing text in sections) is a victory.

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