On the surface, Americans and their lawmakers are more accepting and understanding of LGBTQ+ people than they were a decade ago. The Supreme Court’s 2015 ruling legalizing same-sex marriage is the most concrete and significant victory for LGBTQ+ rights.
In 2016, at least 19 states considered legislation to force everyone to use the restroom of the gender that matches the gender listed on their birth certificate. North Carolina’s passage of the bill sparked controversy across the country and allowed lawmakers to draft similar bills in other states. But the sister bill ran into trouble, and even North Carolina repealed the toilet bill.
Several lawmakers have turned to a new group, a gender law aimed at transgender youth.
Stacker examined state-by-state data on sexual orientation and gender identity policies affecting transgender youth from the Transgender Law Center.
We then ranked all 50 states and Washington, D.C. by total “policy count” (the number of laws and policies that promote equality for LGBTQ+ people), with 51st being the most regulated state and 1st being the most transgender. It was a state that protected gender youth. A negative tally means there are more discrimination laws than protection laws.
TLC’s policy tally considers only the laws passed and does not consider the activist efforts, attitudes and sentiments expressed by the people of the state, or the implementation of these laws. The core categories reviewed by TLC revolve around relationships and parental approval, non-discrimination, religious exemption, LGBTQ+ youth, healthcare, criminal justice, and identification.
TLC’s findings capture how trans youth are protected by statutory law and remain vulnerable, but the law is flexible and legislators are constantly introducing new legislation. Her one category in these rankings captures only laws related to sexuality. This is because there is considerable overlap within the queer community and within the law. Many lesbian, gay, or bisexual individuals identify as transgender, nonbinary, or gender nonconforming.
Since 2020, anti-transgender youth legislation that claims to protect children has been addressed more frequently in state legislatures and entered the mainstream lexicon in 2021. Man.
Tennessee, which has laws banning transgender youth, signed legislation in 2017 to prevent transgender children from receiving gender-affirming care. This is the fifth trans ban law passed in the state. Bills like this claim to protect parents and children, but Tennessee legislators said they would allow common-law marriages between “one man and her one woman” while removing age limits for marriage. We are also considering legislation to establish
Anti-trans youth laws outnumber laws designed to protect trans youth, but several states are enacting or considering legislation aimed at protecting trans children.California States have even introduced legislation to accommodate families evading transgender youth laws. Colorado, formerly known as the “hate state” due to its history of passing anti-LGBTQ+ laws throughout the ’90s, has banned conversion therapy, banned LGBTQ+ identity-based bullying, and adopted LGBTQ+ children. Passed a law to end discrimination against family members. Hawaii, which she passed a bill in March, would require health insurance companies to pay for gender-affirming medical care, but not until 2060.
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