Take Action

Call your U.S. Representative today: Tell them to vote NO on HR 734, the so-called Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2023!

Next week, The House will take a vote on amendments and then on this bill. Reach your Member of Congress, tell them you are a member or supporter of PFLAG, and join PFLAG National in opposing H.R. 734 and rejecting its targeted attacks on transgender, nonbinary, and intersex youth and by doing so, harming girls’ and women’s sports and negatively affect their families who love them. 

We need our federal legislature to join the Biden Administration to let trans kids play to have our federal government not follow the 20 states that already have discriminatory anti-trans, nonbinary and intersex youth in sports state laws on the books.

Reach your U.S. Representative and tell them to uphold Title IX and protect our families by voting “No” on HR 734 which does not protect or support girls or women in sports, including “no cut” teams that permit all of their cisgender peers to play. Mention PFLAG and that you are a constituent.

Submit your comment today in support of hard-won Title IX protections in sport!

20 states have anti-trans sports bans, with more states trying to pile on with trans discrimination. Now, it’s time to take action in support of trans student athletes. 

The Department of Education is taking comments from now through May 15th on its proposed rule on Title IX Athletics, which prohibits categorical exclusion of trans athletes by schools and sets criteria to which they must adhere to receive federal funds. Read the fact sheet from the Department of Education.

So submit your comment today! Together we can ensure that non-discrimination protections based on sex are fully inclusive of our transgender, nonbinary and intersex loved ones and neighbors. Say you are with PFLAG and add a personal sentence of why federal trans inclusion in sports matters to you, your family and neighbors.

Court Matters

Supreme Court temporarily blocks lower court ruling which placed restrictions on abortion medication. The Supreme Court issued an administrative stay of a lower court ruling on April 14th, allowing mifepristone’s FDA approval to remain unchanged until Wednesday, April 19 while the Court considers legal arguments in Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine et al v. U.S. Food and Drug Administration et al. This means mifepristone will remain accessible and on the market, at least for now. 

Court rules that teacher must use students’ names and personal pronouns. On April 7^th the 7^th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the teacher’s right to practice their religious beliefs was outweighed by the impact their misgendering of students had on the Brownsburg High school’s academic climate.

Justice Thomas argues that he did not have to disclose gifts. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas said he was not required to disclose the nature and number of trips he and his wife took that were paid for by political mega-donor Harlan Crow because the Crows are “friends” of the family.

Senator Blocks District Attorney nomination over LGBTQ+ support. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith announced that she would block the nomination of Scott Colom who is currently a D.A. for the 16^th Circuit Court district in Mississippi. Hyde-Smith opposes Colom’s backing of trans rights and accused him of being under the influence of George Soros, a Jewish philanthropist who is often the object of antisemitic conspiracy theories.

Federal Matters

White House promotes LGBTQ+ youth suicide hotline. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre announced at a press conference on March 6^th that LGBTQ+ youth can call “988…The National Crisis Hotline and dial the number ‘3’ to talk to a counselor who has been specifically trained to support LGBTQI+ kids.” She also directly addressed LGBTQ+ children saying “you are loved just as you are.”

Representatives to propose bill to clarify FDA’s authority to regulate abortion medication. In response to a March 7^th ruling that removed approval for Mifepristone (a decision stayed by the Supreme Court on April 14th), Representatives Pat Ryan of New York and Lizzie Fletcher of Texas will introduce legislation to codify the FDA’s authority as the final arbiter of what drugs are approved for medicated abortion.

State Matters

Warning: While some of the following stories describe legislative actions to celebrate and affirm LGBTQ+ people, many cover legislation targeting the LGBTQ+ community, particularly trans and non-binary youth. Please be kind to yourself and use your discretion while reading this section. 

Advisory: State news is representative but not exhaustive due to space constraint; feel free to forward news about your state to advocacy@pflag.org to consider for inclusion.

California - Thousands join Drag March LA to protest anti-LGBTQ+ legislation. On April 9^th thousands of people marched in support of the LGBTQ+ community through West Hollywood. Kerri Colby and Honey Davenport of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” performed for the crowd as well.

Florida - First openly gay Latino legislator, Carlos Guillermo Smith, runs for state Senate. The state’s first openly gay Latino lawmaker announced his state Senate campaign. Carlos Guillermo Smith was a Representative in the state house first elected in 2016, but lost his last bid for reelection. 

Illinois - LGBTQ+ members will be nearly 20% of Chicago city council. After the April 4^th runoff in which 3 LGBTQ+ candidates won, the number of queer city council members is set to rise. Small business owner Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth was elected along with housing developer Joe Dunn, and Illinois State Representative Prentice Butler to the three council seats .

Iowa - State lawmakers pass LGBTQ+ education restriction bill. The legislation would ban any instruction regarding gender identity and sexual orientation from kindergarten through 6th grade. The bill will also require school districts to out students to their parents if they request to be referred to by different pronouns or a different name.

Kansas - State lawmakers approve LGBTQ+ education opt out bill. The bill was proved by the house 76-46 which now goes to Governor Laura Kelly who is expected to veto the bill to try to block its introduction.

Massachusetts - Pressure to found LGBTQ+ resource center at Boston College. Officials at the institution have rejected previous calls for such a center. Queer students argue that having new resources on campus such as a full time LGBTQ+ focused staffer would help the community feel fully accepted at the college.

Michigan - State Supreme Court hears oral arguments in Pueblo v. Haas. The case is regarding a same-sex couple who had a child via IVF but were not married. Carrie Pueblo is suing for custody of the child, while lawyers for her ex-partner, Rachel Haas, have argued that Pueblo has no legal standing to sue for custody of the child since according to them Pueblo is not a biological or genetic “natural parent.” 

New York - Legislation introduced in New York City Council to help LGBTQ+ homeless. One of the bills would mandate reporting on the number of LGBTQ+ youth and adults requesting services while the other would streamline the shelter bed application process for homeless and runaway youth.

Oregon - Woman sues over blocked adoption. A mother of five is suing the state of Oregon for dismissing her application to adopt a pair of siblings claiming it violates her religious freedom. Jessica Bates was denied certification to adopt after she refused to "respect, accept, and support … the sexual orientation, gender identity, [and] gender expression" of children placed in her care. 

Tennessee - Judge continues block on drag law. Judge Thomas L. Parker of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee extended a temporary restraining order on the state’s law banning drag shows until May 26^th.

Pride festival in Nashville suburb faces hurdles. Franklin, a town just outside Nashville, decided to delay a decision on their yearly pride festival until they had crafted a “community decency” policy for the locality. Over 5,000 people attended the first pride festival in Franklin two years ago. 

Texas - Repeal of sodomy ban advances out of committee. The House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence voted in favor of House Bill 2055. HB 2055 would do away with the state statute prohibiting “homosexual conduct” which was rendered unconstitutional in 2003.

Global Matters

Hungary - Fifteen countries back lawsuit against Hungary over anti-LGBTQ+ legislation. France and Germany have now joined the legal proceedings against Hungary. The lawsuit was brought over a 2021 law that bans content that “promotes or portrays” LGBTQ+ people under the guise of protecting children. 

Russia - Gay couple arrested over TikTok videos violating anti-LGBTQ+ laws. The couple is being penalized for their video posts on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. While Gela Gogishvili has been released from jail, his boyfriend Haoyang Xu is set to be deported to China, as he is a Chinese national.

United Kingdom - Government considers modifying Equality Act to define sex as biological, based on birth certificate. Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch is considering changing the definition of sex in the existing Equality Act. The change is being discussed as a way to make it easier to remove trans women from women’s-only spaces.

Media Matters

Tom Daley and Lance Black welcome second child. The Olympic diving and Screenwriting duo announced that they were welcoming Phoenix Rose Black-Daley, a baby boy, into their family. Daley recently received the PFLAG National George Take Advocate award at the PFLAG 50th Anniversary Gala, and called for trans inclusion in sport in his acceptance speech.

Six thousand nuns speak out in support of Trans and nonbinary people. The nuns all wrote and signed a letter declaring that as “... members of the body of Christ, we cannot be whole without the full inclusion of transgender, nonbinary, and gender-expansive individuals.” 

Ada Bello, Scientist and LGBTQ+ activist, dies at 89. Bello was known for helping organize the first Philadelphia Pride Parade and confounding the Philadelphia branch of the Daughters of Bilitis as well as the Homophile Action League.  

First Openly gay man to lead American Medical Association. In addition to being gay, Dr. Jesse Ehrenfeld will be one of the youngest AMA presidents ever at 44 years old. 

JoJo Siwa rebukes Candace Owens for homophobic tweet. After Owen’s tweeted a homophobic video speculating that Siwa was faking being lesbian to strengthen her “brand,” Siwa replied saying she had not viewed the video and to “back the f**k off.”

New Spider-Man movie trailer features trans inclusion. One of the characters in the film, Spider-Gwen, is shown with a ‘Protect Trans Kids’ sign above her bedroom door in the trailer.

PFLAG National
(202) 467-8180 | love@pflag.org

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