Arizona, Oklahoma Advance Spate of Anti-Trans Bills
Pictured: Backers of anti-trans legislation Sen. Julie Daniels of Oklahoma and Sen. John Kavanagh of ArizonaArizona and Oklahoma had field days for anti-LGBTQ+ — and specifically anti-transgender — legislation Thursday, with lawmakers in both states approving multiple harmful bills.In Arizona, the House passed Senate Bill 1138, which bans gender-affirming surgery for minors.
Medical professionals do not generally recommend genital surgery for minors, so it is rarely performed on young people, but some transgender youth do undergo breast surgery, which is banned by the measure in addition to genital surgery.
An earlier version of the bill would have banned puberty blockers or hormone treatment for minors, but it was amended. LGBTQ+ equality groups still see it as unnecessary interference in medical decisions made between young people, their parents, and health care providers.Republican Sen.
John Kavanagh, the bill’s lead sponsor, said that since Arizona legislators outlawed female genital mutilation in 2014, they should likewise ban any sort of genital surgery for young people. “We should stand the same way today because this is mutilation of children,” Kavanagh said, according to the Associated Press. “It is irreversible.
