KALISPELL — Love Lives Here, a Flathead Valley group part of theMontana Human Rights Network, is strongly opposing two bills heard Monday in the Montana Legislature regarding transgender rights.
House Bill 112 would require interscholastic athletes to participate under sex assigned at birth for athletic events starting in elementary school through the collegiate level.
House Bill 113 would prohibit certain medications and medical procedures for the treatment of gender dysphoria in minors, establishing a civil penalty for health care providers providing prohibited treatment.
Love Lives Here community organizer Cherilyn DeVries says studies show that suicide rates drop drastically in transgender youth with proper access to appropriate medical care.
She says the amount of hate messages against transgender youth in Montana has risen dramatically since the bills were first introduced.
“From the comments, we’re are seeing in comment threads on social media it’s clear this has just opened the door for people to just say a lot of horrible things and spread misinformation about Trans people in Montana and especially trans youth,” DeVries told MTN News.
DeVries says the Montana Human Rights Network is hosting a phone bank on Wednesday encouraging Montana citizens to talk to their legislators about House Bill 112 and 113.
