WV Senators attack LGBTQ+ rights & First Amendment
The WV legislative session was feeling pretty quiet until today. The leader of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Tom Willis, decided late last night that his committee would consider three bills targeting the LGBTQ+ community.
They had their meeting and voted to approve two of the three bills, sending them on to the Senate floor. Before I tell you what happened, please stick around and read this entire update. There are important steps we need you to take at the end to help us protect our community.
Here's what you need to know:
Senate Bill 775 - The first bill would have banned "discussions" related to sexual orientation or transitioning, among other things. Sen. Ryan Weld is a longtime Republican in the Legislature, and he called it "the most egregious piece of first amendment trampling" he's ever seen. This bill wouldn't just prevent people from speaking positively about LGBTQ+ people, it would have prevented criticisms, too. We believe the First Amendment is the crown jewel of our Constitution, and lawmakers should not be in the business of telling their constituents what topics they can or cannot debate. Thankfully, this bill was not approved and it was tabled.
Originating Bill - The second bill, which was approved, deals with the crime of indecent exposure. Sen. Weld previously introduced a bill to strengthen protections for minors who are victims of indecent exposure. But instead of voting on that bill, Chairman Willis decided to "originate" a bill, meaning the committee wrote an entirely new version of the proposal. This new version says that a trans woman who uses the women's bathroom or locker room to "undress" is guilty of indecent exposure and could be thrown in jail. Our lawmakers had the chance to protect kids from harm, but instead of doing that, they turned a good bill bad by attacking trans people for no reason. Senators should drop this new bill and run Sen. Weld's original bill.
Senate Bill 590 - The final bill that was approved is one we've heard of before. It says that "male or female impersonators" can be charged with a felony and thrown in jail for up to five years if they perform on public property or in a location where minors could view their performance. It's outrageous. Luckily, the First Amendment will likely protect drag artists from prosecution, but these drag bans are designed to scare performers from sharing their art form. That's called a chilling effect on free speech.
Here's the thing: these two bills, the drag ban and the indecent exposure bill, are heading to the Senate floor for a vote. I'm calling on everyone in our network — members of the community and allies alike — to help us stand up to this hatred. Please, contact members of the WV Senate and tell them to oppose both of these bills.
We've tried to make it easy to contact them. Click the button below to send an email to your Senator in just a couple of minutes. But remember, a personalized message from you will stand out more than using the pre-filled message.
Republicans like to say that Democrats have "Trump Derangement Syndrome," but really it's the Republicans who have "Trans Derangement Syndrome." They've passed law after law restricting the rights of trans people living in West Virginia. They're obsessed.
Ask yourself, have any of these laws helped you? Is your community any safer? Did they create any jobs? Did they save our schools from consolidation and closure? Did they make sure people in McDowell County have clean drinking water? No.
It's time for our lawmakers to step up and address the real issues affecting our state instead of blaming trans people for all of our problems. Your trans neighbors are just like you. They want to protect their families, earn a fair wage, and live in safe communities. It's time for the attacks to stop.
Yours in Fairness,
Andrew Schneider
Executive Director
