News
J.D. Vance signals opposition to same-sex marriage bill
GOP candidate has been backed by gay entrepreneur Peter Thiel
J.D. Vance, a candidate for U.S. Senate in Ohio who was able to obtain the Republican presidential nomination thanks in part to backing from gay conservative entrepreneur Peter Thiel, signaled on Tuesday he’d vote against legislation pending before Congress seeking to codify same-sex marriage into law.
Vance made the comments during a debate with Democratic nominee Tim Ryan, with whom he’s locked in a closely watched race that may decide control of the Senate, after being asked about the Respect for Marriage Act.
āIāve come out against this bill and I donāt think itās actually about gay marriage or same-sex marriage or same-sex equality,” Vance said. “Look, gay marriage is the law of the land of this country and Iām not trying to do anything to change that.”
Ryan, who as a member of the U.S. House was among those who voted in favor of the legislation, said he continues to support the bill and pointed to a concurring opinion from U.S. Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, which sought review of rulings like the Obergefell decision, as evidence of the need to act.
āI voted for that in the House of Representatives and I will support codifying that in the Senate,” Ryan said. “Only J.D. Vance can say that the bill that codifies same-sex marriage is not about same-sex marriage. The problem we have here, we have 15,000 marriages here in Ohio and when you read Justice Thomasā opinion on abortion, which J.D. Vance wants to celebrate, it also included in there nullifying these marriages, and it also included in there getting rid of protections around birth control.”
Vance’s position is consistent with other Republicans, but stands out because of the backing the candidate received from Thiel, who pumped $3.5 million into the race just before the state primary in addition to $10 million to help Vance last year.
Thiel, an entrepreneur and former board member of Facebook, declared he was gay in speech during the 2016 Republican National Convention, but hasn’t otherwise advanced LGBTQ rights in his prominent position as an entrepreneur. Thiel married his same-sex partner in a ceremony in Vienna in 2017.
Vance’s position on the legislation also stands in contrast the position of Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), who’s seat Vance seeking to claim upon the incumbent’s retirement. Portman is a co-sponsor of the Respect for Marriage Act and one of four Republicans to have signaled support for the legislation, including Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) and Ron Johnson (R-Wis.). Johnson, however, has said his support is contingent an amendment making accommodations for religious-based objections to same-sex marriage.
Although initial plans were for the Senate to vote on the legislation ahead of the mid-term elections, supporters made a decision to hold off on the vote until the lame duck session of Congress to make it easier for Republicans to vote “yes.” The House has already approved the legislation in July with unanimous Democratic support and support from one-fourth of the Republican caucus.
Another Thiel-backed candidate, Blake Masters, the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, has declined to say one way or the other which way he’d vote on the legislation, although earlier this year he told Republican donors the U.S. Supreme Court “should not be deciding” the issue same-sex marriage and ended up “just squinting and making up so-called rights in the Constitution,” according to a report in The Daily Beast. Masters was in attendance for Thiel’s wedding to his same-sex partner.
The Mexican Senate on Thursday approved a bill that would ban so-called conversion therapy in the country.
Yaaj MĆ©xico, a Mexican LGBTQ rights group, on X noted the measure passed by a 77-4 vote margin with 15 abstentions. The Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of Mexico’s congress, approved the bill last month that, among other things, would subject conversion therapy practitioners to between two and six years in prison and fines.
The Senate on its X account described conversion therapy as “practices that have incentivized the violation of human rights of the LGBTTTIQ+ community.”
“The Senate moved (to) sanction therapies that impede or annul a person’s orientation or gender identity,” it said. “There are aggravating factors when the practices are done to minors, older adults and people with disabilities.”
Mexico City and the states of Oaxaca, Quintana Roo, Jalisco and Sonora are among the Mexican jurisdictions that have banned the discredited practice.Ā
The Senate in 2022 passed a conversion therapy ban bill, but the House of Deputies did not approve it. It is not immediately clear whether President AndrĆ©s Manuel LĆ³pez Obrador supports the ban.
Canada, Brazil, Belgium, Germany, France, and New Zealand are among the countries that ban conversion therapy. Virginia, California, and D.C. are among the U.S. jurisdictions that prohibit the practice for minors.Ā Ā
The White House
Four states to ignore new Title IX rules protecting transgender students
Biden administrationĀ last Friday released final regulations
BY ERIN REED | Last Friday, the Biden administration released its final Title IX rules, which include protections for LGBTQ students by clarifying that Title IX forbids discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
The rule change could have a significant impact as it would supersede bathroom bans and other discriminatory policies that have become increasingly common in Republican states within the U.S.
As of Thursday morning, however, officials in at least four states ā Oklahoma, Louisiana, Florida, and South Carolina ā have directed schools to ignore the regulations, potentially setting up a federal showdown that may ultimately end up in a protracted court battle in the lead-up to the 2024 elections.
Louisiana State Superintendent of Education Cade Brumley was the first to respond, decrying the fact that the new Title IX regulations could block teachers and other students from exercising what has been dubbed by some a āright to bullyā transgender students by using their old names and pronouns intentionally.
Asserting that Title IX law does not protect trans and queer students, Brumley states that schools āshould not alter policies or procedures at this time.ā Critically, several courts have ruled that trans and queer students are protected by Title IX, including the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of AppealsĀ in a recent case in West Virginia.
In South Carolina, Schools Supt. Ellen Weaver wrote in a letter that providing protections for trans and LGBTQ students under Title IX āwould rescind 50 years of progress and equality of opportunity by putting girls and women at a disadvantage in the educational arena,ā apparently leaving trans kids out of her definition of those who deserve progress and equality of opportunity.
She then directed schools to ignore the new directive while waiting for court challenges. While South Carolina does not have a bathroom ban or statewide “Donāt Say Gay or Trans” law, such bills continue to be proposed in the state.
Responding to the South Carolina letter, Chase Glenn of Alliance For Full Acceptance stated, āWhile Supt. Weaver may not personally support the rights of LGBTQ+ students, she has the responsibility as the top school leader in our state to ensure that all students have equal rights and protections, and a safe place to learn and be themselves. The flagrant disregard shown for the Title IX rule tells me that our superintendent unfortunately does not have the best interests of all students in mind.ā
Florida Education Commissioner Manny Diaz also joined in instructing schools not to implement Title IX regulations. In a letter issued to area schools, Diaz stated that the new Title IX regulations were tantamount to āgaslighting the country into believing that biological sex no longer has any meaning.ā
Governor Ron DeSantis approved of the letter and stated that Florida āwill not comply.ā Florida has notably been the site of some of the most viciously anti-queer and anti-trans legislation in recent history, including a “Donāt Say Gay or Trans” law that was used to force a trans female teacher to go by āMr.ā
State Education Supt. Ryan Walters of Oklahoma was the latest to echo similar sentiments. Walters has recently appointed the right-wing media figure Chaya Raichik of Libs of TikTok to an advisory role āto improve school safety,ā and notably, Raichik has posed proudly with papers accusing her of instigating bomb threats with her incendiary posts about LGBTQ people in classrooms.
The Title IX policies have been universally applauded by large LGBTQ rights organizations in the U.S. Lambda Legal, a key figure in fighting anti-LGBTQ legislation nationwide, said that the regulations āclearly cover LGBTQ+ students, as well as survivors and pregnant and parenting students across race and gender identity.ā The Human Rights Campaign also praised the rule, stating, ārule will be life-changing for so many LGBTQ+ youth and help ensure LGBTQ+ students can receive the same educational experience as their peers: Going to dances, safely using the restroom, and writing stories that tell the truth about their own lives.ā
The rule is slated to go into effect Aug. 1, pending any legal challenges.
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Erin Reed is a transgender woman (she/her pronouns) and researcher who tracks anti-LGBTQ+ legislation around the world and helps people become better advocates for their queer family, friends, colleagues, and community. Reed also is a social media consultant and public speaker.
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The preceding article was first published at Erin In The Morning and is republished with permission.
South America
Argentina government dismisses transgender public sector employees
Country’s Trans Labor Quota Law enacted in 2021
Protests have broken out across Argentina in recent weeks after the dismissal of transgender people from their government jobs.
President Javier Milei’s action is in stark contract with the progress seen in 2023, where the government’s hiring of trans people increased by 900 percent within the framework of the Trans Labor Quota Law that had been in place since 2021.
Among those affected is Sofia Diaz, a “survivor” who shared her testimony with the Washington Blade hours after she traveled from Chaco Province to Buenos Aires to protest her dismissal.
Presentes, an LGBTQ news agency, reported the government dismissed more than 85 trans employees in less than two weeks.
Diaz, 49, holds a degree in combined arts. She joined the National Social Security Administration (ANSES) in 2022 under the Trans Labor Inclusion Law. The layoffs began in January and left many people feeling uncertain and anguished. It was her turn a few days ago.
Diaz in an interview recounted how the situation became progressively more complicated, with difficulties in accessing information about her employment status and the eventual confirmation of dismissals through WhatsApp messages. This government action, according to Diaz, violates the law.
“We were on a Friday, I think on March 24, in the office and we have a WhatsApp group of other colleagues from all over Argentina who entered through the trans labor quota and they tell us if we can get our pay stubs on the intranet,” Diaz recalled. “So, I tried to enter, I could not, I talked to two other colleagues and they told me no, they could not, and so we went to another person. He couldn’t either.”
“Some people told us that it could be a system error. Well, we were never calm, let’s say not how this issue of installing fear and the perversion with which they do it ends,” she added. “This sadism of … inflicting pain and speculating with your misfortune and so on … is something that characterizes Javier Milei’s government.”
Diaz recalled a list of those dismissed from the agency began to circulate from the union in the afternoon. A colleague passed it on to her, “and well, unfortunately I was also on that list.”
“At that moment the whole weekend went by with anguish, crying, and talking with other colleagues from other places, not only trans, but everyone, everyone and everyone,” she said. “On Monday when we went to try to enter, we could not enter with the biometric, which is the thumb we had to use every morning to enter.”
Despite the difficult moment through which she is going, the trans activist stressed to the Blade that she will continue protesting and will even sue the government because her dismissal is illegal and “violates the constitution itself.”
The LGBTQ community and its allies have mobilized and organized demonstrations, highlighting the importance of defending the rights won and fighting against discrimination and exclusion. Diaz emphasized the fight is not only for the people affected today, but also for future generations, saying the historical memory of the struggles for inclusion and social justice must be kept alive.
“The Argentine government thus faces a key challenge in human and labor rights, where public pressure and social mobilization can play a determining role in protecting the rights of LGBTQ+ people,” Diaz said.
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