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Arizona LGBTQ leaders call on HRC to end support for Sinema

Angry over the filibuster, activists urge donors to cut funding

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Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) is being criticized for supporting the filibuster. (Blade file photo by Michael Key)

In a little-noticed development, more than 100 LGBTQ community leaders and allied supporters in Arizona sent a joint letter in January to the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest LGBTQ civil rights group, demanding that it withdraw its political and financial support for U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) unless and until Sinema ends her support for the Senate filibuster.

The letter points out that by continuing to refuse to join efforts by Senate Democratic leaders to end the filibuster, which requires 60 votes to pass legislation, Sinema is helping Republicans block progressive legislation already approved by the U.S. House of Representatives, including the Equality Act, the LGBTQ nondiscrimination bill stalled in the Senate.

The LGBTQ leaders, who drafted the letter in partnership with the Arizona Coalition to End the Filibuster, told HRC they will call on HRC’s supporters to stop funding the group unless it backs away from its support for Sinema.

“The toll of Sinema’s obstruction – which HRC continues to tacitly support and thus enable – for your constituents is growing each day,” the letter states, adding, “with the filibuster blocking popular legislation, backed by all or nearly all Democrats, to address the urgent issues of reproductive justice, immigrant rights, gun violence, police reform, workers’ right to organizing, raising the minimum wage, and more.”

In a statement released shortly after sending their Jan. 19 letter to HRC, the Arizona LGBTQ leaders said HRC’s Interim President Joni Madison sent them a letter on Jan. 24 saying that HRC had privately “made it clear” to Sinema’s staff that HRC disagrees with her pro-filibuster positions, especially her vote against temporarily suspending the filibuster to enable the Senate to pass two voting rights bills.

But the statement says Madison’s letter “did not commit to any public statement toward Sinema, to a strong public position in favor of ending the filibuster, or to withdraw support from Sinema if she maintains her obstructionist stance that blocks passage of the Equality Act, critical voting rights legislation, and so much more.”

HRC, along with many other LGBTQ organizations, has supported Sinema since the time of her election in 2018, when she became the nation’s first openly bisexual U.S. senator. At the time of her election, Sinema expressed strong support for the Democratic Party’s progressive agenda. She also signed on as a co-sponsor of the Equality Act and has since said she would vote for the LGBTQ rights measure.

But since 2020, she has stated she supports the filibuster because she, like other supporters of the controversial Senate rule, claim it fosters bipartisanship by requiring both parties to compromise as a means of passing controversial legislation.

Nearly all political observers in Washington believe the Equality Act, which passed in the House last year, is dead in the Senate without the lifting of the filibuster.

A spokesperson for Sinema’s office in Washington did not respond to a request from the Washington Blade for comment and a possible interview with the Arizona senator to obtain her thoughts on the growing opposition to her continued support of the Senate filibuster.

In response to a request from the Blade for comment on the Arizona LGBTQ leaders’ criticism of HRC’s actions toward Sinema, an HRC spokesperson referred the Blade to an updated statement on Sinema that HRC released on Feb. 9, which it attributes to the “HRC staff.”

The statement says HRC strongly supported efforts by Senate Democratic leaders to suspend the filibuster to enable the two voting rights bills to pass, which supporters said were needed to counter the numerous laws enacted by GOP-controlled state legislatures to restrict voting rights of minorities. The statement says HRC was especially troubled that Sinema and Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) joined Republicans in voting against the temporary suspension of the filibuster, which resulted in the two voting rights bills dying on the Senate floor.

“We must hold politicians accountable,” the HRC statement says. “We have been working diligently to make sure we hold Senator Sinema accountable now and, in the future,” it says.

“Prior to the vote, HRC directly called on her to enable the Senate to change its rules to allow voting rights reform to pass; and then we directly let her know that we felt betrayed by her actions after the vote,” the statement continues.

The statement says HRC will use the vote by senators on the two voting rights bills, along with votes on other bills, to rate senators in HRC’s Congressional Scorecard, which rates all members of Congress on issues deemed important to the LGBTQ community.

HRC assigned Sinema a rating of 100, its highest possible rating, during the 114th Congress when Sinema served in the U.S. House. It gave her a 94 rating for the 115th Congress while she was also in the House. HRC assigned her a rating of 89 for the 116th Congress during her first two years as a U.S. senator.

To the disappointment of the Arizona LGBTQ leaders, the HRC statement does not commit to publicly denouncing Sinema or ending its political or financial support for the Arizona senator. Instead, the statement says HRC “is structured differently than the organizations that publicly condemned the Senator.”

According to its statement, HRC “endorses candidates, supports them through their election, works with them to pass legislation and policy, and holds them accountable for their commitments and actions.” It notes that with three years left in Sinema’s term in office, “we still have much work to do,” adding that HRC will be working on a wide range of pending legislation and judicial nominations, including the Voting Rights Act and the Equality Act.

“Strategically, we have to consider the long-range view and the impact of the work ahead,” the statement says. “With that in mind, we will continue to work with the current Senate to advance equality for our community in all of our intersecting identities. And as part of that work, we will continue to be honest with those who fall short of their commitments to us and our community,” the statement concludes.

In their joint letter to HRC, the Arizona LGBTQ leaders stated, “[W]e call on Human Rights Campaign to publicly disavow any future endorsement or financial support for Senator Sinema if she does not reverse her position on the filibuster.” The statement adds, “And we call on all donors to HRC to withhold further contributions until this is done.”

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Federal Government

RFK Jr.’s HHS report pushes therapy, not medical interventions, for trans youth

‘Discredited junk science’ — GLAAD

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HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

A 409-page report released Thursday by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services challenges the ethics of medical interventions for youth experiencing gender dysphoria, the treatments that are often collectively called gender-affirming care, instead advocating for psychotherapy alone.

The document comes in response to President Donald Trump’s executive order barring the federal government from supporting gender transitions for anyone younger than 19.

“Our duty is to protect our nation’s children — not expose them to unproven and irreversible medical interventions,” National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya said in a statement. “We must follow the gold standard of science, not activist agendas.”

While the report does not constitute clinical guidance, its findings nevertheless conflict with not just the recommendations of LGBTQ advocacy groups but also those issued by organizations with relevant expertise in science and medicine.

The American Medical Association, for instance, notes that “empirical evidence has demonstrated that trans and non-binary gender identities are normal variations of human identity and expression.”

Gender-affirming care for transgender youth under standards widely used in the U.S. includes supportive talk therapy along with — in some but not all cases — puberty blockers or hormone treatment.

“The suggestion that someone’s authentic self and who they are can be ‘changed’ is discredited junk science,” GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis said in a statement. “This so-called guidance is grossly misleading and in direct contrast to the recommendation of every leading health authority in the world. This report amounts to nothing more than forcing the same discredited idea of conversion therapy that ripped families apart and harmed gay, lesbian, and bisexual young people for decades.”

GLAAD further notes that the “government has not released the names of those involved in consulting or authoring this report.”

Janelle Perez, executive director of LPAC, said, “For decades, every major medical association–including the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics–have affirmed that medical care is the only safe and effective treatment for transgender youth experiencing gender dysphoria.

“This report is simply promoting conversion therapy by a different name – and the American people know better. We know that conversion therapy isn’t actually therapy – it isolates and harms kids, scapegoats parents, and divides families through blame and rejection. These tactics have been used against gay kids for decades, and now the same people want to use them against transgender youth and their families.

“The end result here will be a devastating denial of essential health care for transgender youth, replaced by a dangerous practice that every major U.S. medical and mental health association agree promotes anxiety, depression, and increased risk of suicidal thoughts and attempts.

“Like being gay or lesbian, being transgender is not a choice, and no amount of pressure can force someone to change who they are. We also know that 98% of people who receive transition-related health care continue to receive that health care throughout their lifetime. Trans health care is health care.”

“Today’s report seeks to erase decades of research and learning, replacing it with propaganda. The claims in today’s report would rip health care away from kids and take decision-making out of the hands of parents,” said Shannon Minter, legal director of NCLR. “It promotes the same kind of conversion therapy long used to shame LGBTQ+ people into hating themselves for being unable to change something they can’t change.”

“Like being gay or lesbian, being transgender is not a choice—it’s rooted in biology and genetics,” Minter said. “No amount or talk or pressure will change that.” 

Human Rights Campaign Chief of Staff Jay Brown released a statement: “Trans people are who we are. We’re born this way. And we deserve to live our best lives and have a fair shot and equal opportunity at living a good life.

“This report misrepresents the science that has led all mainstream American medical and mental health professionals to declare healthcare for transgender youth to be best practice and instead follows a script predetermined not by experts but by Sec. Kennedy and anti-equality politicians.”




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The White House

Trump nominates Mike Waltz to become next UN ambassador

Former Fla. congressman had been national security advisor

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U.N. headquarters in New York (Washington Blade photo by Michael K. Lavers)

President Donald Trump on Thursday announced he will nominate Mike Waltz to become the next U.S. ambassador to the U.N.

Waltz, a former Florida congressman, had been the national security advisor.

Trump announced the nomination amid reports that Waltz and his deputy, Alex Wong, were going to leave the administration after Waltz in March added a journalist to a Signal chat in which he, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and other officials discussed plans to attack Houthi rebels in Yemen.

“I am pleased to announce that I will be nominating Mike Waltz to be the next United States ambassador to the United Nations,” said Trump in a Truth Social post that announced Waltz’s nomination. “From his time in uniform on the battlefield, in Congress and, as my National Security Advisor, Mike Waltz has worked hard to put our nation’s Interests first. I know he will do the same in his new role.”

Trump said Secretary of State Marco Rubio will serve as interim national security advisor, “while continuing his strong leadership at the State Department.”

“Together, we will continue to fight tirelessly to make America, and the world, safe again,” said Trump.

Trump shortly after his election nominated U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) to become the next U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Trump in March withdrew her nomination in order to ensure Republicans maintained their narrow majority in the U.S. House of Representatives.

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U.S. Federal Courts

Second federal lawsuit filed against White House passport policy

Two of seven plaintiffs live in Md.

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Lambda Legal on April 25 filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of seven transgender and nonbinary people who are challenging the Trump-Vance administration’s passport policy.

The lawsuit, which Lambda Legal filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland in Baltimore, alleges the policy that bans the State Department from issuing passports with “X” gender markers “has caused and is causing grave and immediate harm to transgender people like plaintiffs, in violation of their constitutional rights to equal protection.”

Two of the seven plaintiffs — Jill Tran and Peter Poe — live in Maryland. The State Department, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and the federal government are defendants.

“The discriminatory passport policy exposes transgender U.S. citizens to harassment, abuse, and discrimination, in some cases endangering them abroad or preventing them from traveling, by forcing them to use identification documents that share private information against their wishes,” said Lambda Legal in a press release.

Zander Schlacter, a New York-based textile artist and designer, is the lead plaintiff.

The lawsuit notes he legally changed his name and gender in New York.

Schlacter less than a week before President Donald Trump’s inauguration “sent an expedited application to update his legal name on his passport, using form DS-5504.”

Trump once he took office signed an executive order that banned the State Department from issuing passports with “X” gender markers. The lawsuit notes Schlacter received his new passport in February.

“The passport has his correct legal name, but now has an incorrect sex marker of ‘F’ or ‘female,'” notes the lawsuit. “Mr. Schlacter also received a letter from the State Department notifying him that ‘the date of birth, place of birth, name, or sex was corrected on your passport application,’ with ‘sex’ circled in red. The stated reason was ‘to correct your information to show your biological sex at birth.'”

“I, like many transgender people, experience fear of harassment or violence when moving through public spaces, especially where a photo ID is required,” said Schlacter in the press release that announced the lawsuit. “My safety is further at risk because of my inaccurate passport. I am unwilling to subject myself and my family to the threat of harassment and discrimination at the hands of border officials or anyone who views my passport.”

Former Secretary of State Antony Blinken in June 2021 announced the State Department would begin to issue gender-neutral passports and documents for American citizens who were born overseas.

Dana Zzyym, an intersex U.S. Navy veteran who identifies as nonbinary, in 2015 filed a federal lawsuit against the State Department after it denied their application for a passport with an “X” gender marker. Zzyym in October 2021 received the first gender-neutral American passport.

Lambda Legal represented Zzyym.

The State Department policy took effect on April 11, 2022.

Trump signed his executive order shortly after he took office in January. Germany, Denmark, Finland, and the Netherlands are among the countries that have issued travel advisories for trans and nonbinary people who plan to visit the U.S.

A federal judge in Boston earlier this month issued a preliminary injunction against the executive order.  The American Civil Liberties Union filed the lawsuit on behalf of seven trans and nonbinary people.

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