• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Towleroad
  • Towleroad on Social Media
  • Privacy Policy

Towleroad Gay News

Gay Blog Towleroad: More than gay news | gay men

  • Travel
  • Sports
  • Law/Justice
  • Celebrities
  • Republicans
  • Madonna
  • Books
  • Men
  • Trans Rights
  • Royals
  • Monkeypox
  • Jennifer Coolidge reveals ‘terrible mistake’ she made early on in her career
  • Britney Spears Goes to Gym in Silk Dress and Heels With ‘Hot, Crazy Husband’ Sam Asghari
  • Study finds the political impact of marriage varies by sexual identity

West Virginia, Arkansas Laws That Restrict Trans Rights are Unconstitutional; and Courts Should Strike Down, says Justice Dept.

Michael Goff June 19, 2021 Leave a Comment

 
Published by
Reuters
 
trans rights

By Jan Wolfe

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Justice Department on Thursday made its most forceful statement against a wave of Republican-backed state laws that restrict transgender rights, saying measures enacted in West Virginia and Arkansas should be struck down in the courts.

Justice Department lawyers urged a West Virginia judge to invalidate a state law banning transgender athletes from competing in female sports in middle and high schools and colleges, in a legal brief known as a “statement of interest.”

The department filed a similar brief in federal court in Arkansas, saying it is unconstitutional for that state to bar healthcare professionals from providing transition-related care to transgender minors.

In both cases, the federal government threw its weight behind court challenges brought by the American Civil Liberties Union and other groups that advocate for transgender rights.

The Justice Department briefs argue that the two laws each violate the right to “equal protection” under the law enshrined in the U.S. Constitution’s 14th Amendment.

The offices of Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge and West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, who are defending the laws in court, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Judges are not bound by the Justice Department’s interpretation of the law, but the statements are likely to influence their thinking, said Shiwali Patel, a lawyer at the National Women’s Law Center who has been monitoring the cases.

“This is an important signal to lawmakers that are considering enacting these anti-trans bills into law,” Patel said.

The West Virginia bill was signed into law by Republican Governor Jim Justice in April. Similar laws banning transgender athletes from competing in female sports have been enacted in states including Florida and South Dakota. Proponents have said the measures will protect the integrity of girls’ athletics.

Lawyers for Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration say Republican officials in West Virginia “legislated based on misconceptions and overbroad assumptions” about transgender youth.

“That policy does nothing to further the state’s purported goal of protecting athletic opportunities for girls,” the Justice Department brief stated.

The Arkansas law threatens healthcare professionals who provide puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones or gender-affirming surgery to minors with losing their medical licenses and opens them up to lawsuits from patients who later regret their procedures.

Republican lawmakers have said some minors are facing undue pressure to reconsider their gender and that the law will protect them from undergoing a procedure they may later regret.

Arkansas Republican Governor Asa Hutchinson vetoed the bill in April, calling it a “vast government overreach,” but the state legislature overrode his veto.

Transgender advocates have attacked the measure, also being considered in a number of other states, saying that cutting off badly needed care to adolescents would inevitably lead to more suicides.

(Reporting by Jan Wolfe; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Peter Cooney)

Trans Rights previously on Towleroad

Topics: Aaon, News, Trans Rights More Posts About: Arkansas, Trans Rights, West Virginia

Related Posts
  • Alabama Sued In Federal Court By Families, Doctors After Anti-Trans Healthcare Bill Signed Into Law
  • UK Cancels Global LGBTQ Conference After 80 UK Groups Refuse to Attend With Trans Conversion Therapy Left Out of Proposed Ban
  • TikTok Bans Misgendering, Deadnaming And Promoting Conversion Therapy; First Platform to Attempt Difficult Enforcement; GLAAD Takes Credit
  • Britney Spears Goes to Gym in Silk Dress and Heels With ‘Hot, Crazy Husband’ Sam Asghari

    Britney Spears Goes to Gym in Silk Dress and Heels With ‘Hot, Crazy Husband’ Sam Asghari

    Published by OK Magazine @britneyspears/instagram Britney Spears is trying something new! The princess of pop changed up her look while joining husband Sam Asghari in the gym, opting for a pink, silk dress with lace and …Read More »
  • Study finds the political impact of marriage varies by sexual identity

    Study finds the political impact of marriage varies by sexual identity

    Published by PsyPost New research indicates that marriage and political activism are intertwined, but the nature of this relationship differs based on sexual identities. Married heterosexual individuals tend to be less politically active, while sexual minorities, …Read More »
  • ‘It’s great!’ Elliot Page talks dating since coming out as trans

    ‘It’s great!’ Elliot Page talks dating since coming out as trans

    Published by BANG Showbiz English Elliot Page is having more fun dating since his transition. The 36-year-old star- who was previously married to Emma Portner from 2018 until 2021 – was born female and lived as …Read More »
  • Barstool Sports hits back amid backlash over online sportsbook’s support for Pride month

    Barstool Sports hits back amid backlash over online sportsbook’s support for Pride month

    Published by Raw Story Barstool Sports is facing backlash over its support for Pride month, and the sports betting blog is hitting back, The Daily Beast reports. Barstool Sports, which in 2020 launched the Barstool Sportsbook …Read More »
Previous Post: « Paris Jackson, Michael’s Daughter, is Out and Unlabeled; Has Dated Men, Women, Non-Binary; Feels Excluded By Religious Extended Family.
Next Post: Kehlani Image Is Result of Identity Crisis Before Coming Out, ‘nails longer than your hand’ From ‘Baggy pants and sports bras, blah, blah’ »

Primary Sidebar

Adjacent News

  • 14 organizations that support LGBTQ+ tech workers

    14 organizations that support LGBTQ+ tech workers

  • Indiana mayor orders city remove social media posts celebrating Pride: report

    Indiana mayor orders city remove social media posts celebrating Pride: report

  • ‘Grotesque scaremongering’: Nikki Haley decried for blaming teen suicidal ideation on trans kids

    ‘Grotesque scaremongering’: Nikki Haley decried for blaming teen suicidal ideation on trans kids

Good Trash: Going to Read It Somewhere, Y'know

  • Elliot Page Shockingly Admits He had Secret Relationship With Kate Mara While She was Dating Max Minghelia

    Elliot Page Shockingly Admits He had Secret Relationship With Kate Mara While She was Dating Max Minghelia

  • VIDEO EXCLUSIVE: Mark Indelicato & Vincent Rodriguez Discuss Being Gay Role Models In ‘With Love’

    VIDEO EXCLUSIVE: Mark Indelicato & Vincent Rodriguez Discuss Being Gay Role Models In ‘With Love’

  • Britney Spears ‘Already Toned’ Down Her Tell-All Book ‘a Few Times,’ Says Insider: Pop Star Is ‘Annoyed at All the Delays’

    Britney Spears ‘Already Toned’ Down Her Tell-All Book ‘a Few Times,’ Says Insider: Pop Star Is ‘Annoyed at All the Delays’

Partner Links

  • May The Bloopers Be With You
  • “Remy Ma says she gets to be 35 years old because of Covid & prison” links
  • Taylor Swift & Matt Healy are already done, one month after they ‘began’
  • Sean Hayes shares hilarious NY deli moment!
  • Remains of the Day (06/06)

Most Recent

  • Jennifer Coolidge reveals ‘terrible mistake’ she made early on in her career

    Jennifer Coolidge reveals ‘terrible mistake’ she made early on in her career

  • Britney Spears Goes to Gym in Silk Dress and Heels With ‘Hot, Crazy Husband’ Sam Asghari

    Britney Spears Goes to Gym in Silk Dress and Heels With ‘Hot, Crazy Husband’ Sam Asghari

  • Study finds the political impact of marriage varies by sexual identity

    Study finds the political impact of marriage varies by sexual identity

  • ‘It’s great!’ Elliot Page talks dating since coming out as trans

    ‘It’s great!’ Elliot Page talks dating since coming out as trans

  • Barstool Sports hits back amid backlash over online sportsbook’s support for Pride month

    Barstool Sports hits back amid backlash over online sportsbook’s support for Pride month

  • Kelly Clarkson Looks Stunning in Pride-Themed, Makeup Free Video

    Kelly Clarkson Looks Stunning in Pride-Themed, Makeup Free Video

  • Andy Cohen Thanks Former Governor Andrew Cuomo for Having Daughter Lucy be ‘One of the First’ Gestational Surrogacies in New York

    Andy Cohen Thanks Former Governor Andrew Cuomo for Having Daughter Lucy be ‘One of the First’ Gestational Surrogacies in New York

  • Honor the past and celebrate the present with PRIDE | Opinion

    Honor the past and celebrate the present with PRIDE | Opinion

Most Commented

Social

Twitter @tlrd | Facebook | Instagram @tlrd

Footer

Copyright © 2023 · Log in

×