West Virginia State Senator Mike Azinger introduced a slew of bills targeting transgender people on Wednesday, including a bill to classify transgender people as “obscene matter” and a bill banning gender-affirming care for people under the age of 21.
Senate Bill 195 amends the state’s indecent exposure law to criminalize engaging in “obscene matter.” It defines “obscene matter” as something that the “average person” would find sexually explicit, offensive, or void of literary, artistic merit or scientific merit. The proposed law specifically includes “any transvestite and/or transgender exposure, performances, or display to any minor” in this definition. Paired with Senate Bill 197, which prohibits “obscene matter” from being within 2,500 feet of a school, this would criminalize being openly transgender in front of a minor or near schools as indecent exposure. The bills also increased the associated fines and jail time.
Senate Bills 195 and 197 did not say what this would mean for West Virginia’s transgender youth, but Azinger introduced another related bill that did concern transgender youth. Senate Bill 194 amends the state’s ban on gender-affirming care for minors to include people under 21. The bill also prohibits treatment for gender dysphoria unless it was oriented towards a “cure.” LGBTQ+ advocates say this is mandated conversion therapy, a practice that is banned in 22 states. Ash Orr, an activist in West Virginia, condemned the bills, saying transgender people know who they are:
There is nothing to “cure.” The truth is, trans people of all ages are living happy, complete, and joyful lives – this contradicts the false narrative created around our community by extremist politicians. This piece of legislation attacks our most basic values of privacy and control over our own bodies, and is based on misleading or even outright false ideas.
The proposed amendments build on West Virginia’s recent actions targeting the transgender community. The state previously passed a bill banning gender-affirming care for people under 18, a bill banning transgender athletes from competition and West Virginia Medicaid Program has denied gender-affirming surgery. West Virginia has been sued for these actions, with the US Supreme Court declining to reinstate the transgender athlete ban and appeals courts hearing challenges to surgery denials.
The bills comes less than a year after a prominent LGBTQ+ rights group declared a state of emergency in the US, echoing concerns from a UN expert that LGBTQ+ rights in the US were being “deliberately undermined” by state governments. LGBTQ+ rights in the US are falling more and more along state and partisan lines, with Human Rights Campaign calling Republican-controlled states “increasingly hostile to LGBTQ+ people.”
State legislators introduced more than 500 anti-LGBTQ+ bills in 2023, a historic high. Tennessee and Florida attracted particular attention for strict laws targeting drag performances and school discussions. Laws are not limited to those states, however, with Texas, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska and others passing bills that target LGBTQ+ people. Many of these bills have been challenged in court, with some judges blocking laws or issuing temporary relief.
Despite the increase in anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, Orr said the LGBTQ+ community in West Virginia was resolute: “The rise in legislative attacks aimed at our community is concerning, but it shows the desperation of lawmakers and extremists who are against transgender rights.”
