Censured transgender Montana lawmaker says states are banning past, present, and future of LGBT community
Julia Johnson
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Transgender Montana state lawmaker Zooey Zephyr told the hosts of The View Thursday that some states are trying to outlaw the past, present, and future of the LGBT community in the United States.
Zephyr is a biological man who identifies as a transgender woman.
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“They are banning our past when they ban our art forms and our histories, whether that’s individual histories or drag, which is part of our collective history,” the recently censured lawmaker explained. “They’re banning our present by teaching about us and they are banning our future when they ban our healthcare.”
According to Zephyr, these are attempts “to other us, and create a bogeyman to rally their base.”
However, the transgender lawmaker is confident that such bills will ultimately fail, despite many having already been passed through legislatures and enforced across the country.
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Zephyr also responded to the Montana Freedom Caucus, which had called for her censure. “What’s shocking is what are they willing to throw away to achieve their policy goals. And here it was the first principles of our country, elected representation,” the lawmaker said, referencing the about 11,000 constituents represented by Zephyr.
“They were also intentionally misgendering me. They were calling me a man,” Zephyr said of the caucus. The censured lawmaker further slammed the group as hypocritical “both in that letter and in policy goals.
“What does it mean to use decorum as a cudgel to silence opposition?” Zephyr asked. “What does it mean to use parental rights only for the rights of parents with cisgender kids and not transgender kids?”
According to Zephyr, not allowing children suffering from gender dysphoria to access gender transition procedures and treatments “creates conditions where life becomes hard and it’s why we fight so hard to make sure that the people in our state and our country have access to this care they need.”
In April, the Montana legislature passed a bill to prohibit children from receiving a variety of gender transition procedures and treatments. During the floor debate, Zephyr said, “The only thing I will say is if you vote yes on this bill and yes on these amendments, I hope the next time there’s an invocation when you bow your heads in prayer, you see the blood on your hands.”
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In response, the state’s Freedom Caucus demanded the lawmaker’s censure for “attempting to shame the Montana legislative body and by using inappropriate and uncalled-for language.”
The House ultimately voted to censure Zephyr. As a result, the lawmaker cannot speak on the floor, but Zephyr can vote remotely.