According to the American Civil Liberties Union, a record number of bills that attack LGBTQIA+ rights have been introduced to schools across the United States. While only 22 of the 513 bills are being passed into law, the bills that are still advancing and those being newly introduced pose a threat to queer students across America by arguing against the rights of such individuals.
The anti-queer legislation that is being debated stands to weaken civil rights laws, restrict student and educator rights, ban public accommodations, limit free speech and expression and restrict healthcare for people who identify within the LGBTQIA+ community. These bills are often overlooked by many due to the supposed acceptance of LGBTQIA+ identities within modern society, or the vetoing of the laws by Congress.
Freshman Ronny Stuckey disagrees with the circumstances as even if the bills are being overturned, their origin is still concerning.
“I don’t think (bills being overruled) is an excuse to think ‘It doesn’t matter.’ Just the fact that people are proposing these bills and the fact that these bills are an idea in the first place is terrifying,” Stuckey said. “It’s amazing that (the bills) aren’t being passed and are being vetoed almost immediately, but how are they allowed to be proposed? Why are people thinking like this?”
Though the proposition of bills is an enactment of free speech, Stuckey believes there should be stronger guidelines in place to prevent legislation from causing harm. For many queer people, California is a safe haven because of its largely liberal political orientation. Even in California, however, many queer students still face discrimination from peers and teachers because of their identities.
Freshman Orion Kilbourn opened up about the lack of security they have felt at SCHS.
“I feel safe with my sexuality, but a lot of times people will bully me for my gender expression, or just how my body looks,” Kilbourn said. “I’m not trans. I’m intersex, but people think I’m trans, so I get a lot of transphobic slurs.”
Considering only 1.7% of the global population is intersex, Kilbourn has had both cisgender heteronormative and queer people misunderstand the identity of intersex individuals. Many queer people have faced discrimination because people who do not understand the LGBTQIA+ community refuse to try and learn. Kilbourn shared their perspective on how she has experienced discrimination and how the lack of education has aggravated it.
“I’ve had people just stand behind me and say mean things to me,” Kilbourn said. “I had this guy be like ‘Are you sure you’re not trans?’ and I asked, ‘Male to female or female to male?’ and he said, ‘Male to female.’ ‘Yeah I’m sure I don’t have a penis. What are you talking about?’”
Criticism of the purpose behind anti-queer legislation has inspired a larger debate concerning the motives of lawmakers that have proposed them. The Republican party has heavily emphasized fear of the queer community for the past few years in their campaigns. From the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill to the banning of transgender children from sports, these campaigns act to discourage queer public displays and classroom discussions. Stuckey believes LGBTQIA+ people pose no threat and reflected on his outlook regarding the rationale of the conservative argument.
“I feel like a lot of transphobes and a lot of people who have the idea that ‘kids shouldn’t be getting these (transgender) procedures’ don’t really care about protecting kids. I feel like they’re more focused on upholding this conservative idea they have of a strict gender binary where there’s only two options.” Stuckey said.
Conservative voters aim to restrict the queer community’s rights through passing laws. Because queer people are a minority and have little education on how the American government functions, it is difficult for them to fight back.
Junior Mango Creech recognized this issue and proposed ways the queer community can combat discriminatory laws.
“There are petitions you can sign. There’s sharing and keeping educated on what’s happening, which is really helpful, and offering support to those who are not in a supported situation,” Creech said.
By unionizing, queer communities can more effectively uplift one another and be heard. Stuckey emphasized why strong bonds between LGBTQIA+ people have been beneficial for him at SCHS and why they are crucial for the larger cause of queer acceptance.
“Sense of community is such a huge thing… With cis people, I feel I have to ‘suck up’ to them and their definition of masculinity and how they see a man,” Stuckey said. “But with trans people, they’re willing to accept me as a man no matter how I present myself.”