Last year, Texas set a record with 23 anti-LGBT bills. But this year Oklahoma is nipping at the Lone Star state’s heels with 26 of its own egregious bills. Troy Stevenson of Freedom Oklahoma walked Zack Ford through some of the worst.
House Bill 3044 targets the most vulnerable LGBT Americans: our youth
HB 3044 would prevent any school counselor, therapist, administrator, or teacher from providing students with any guidance or information about “human sexuality” without notifying their parents. In other words, school officials can do nothing to affirm LGBT students without outing them to their families.
Seriously, GOP Rep. Sally Kern, the bill's sponsor, is scum. This is exactly the type of effort that will make LGBT youth even more susceptible to suicide by depriving them of the support networks they especially need when they don't live in a supportive household. Nice work, Sally. You're a real gem.
House Joint Resolution 1059 is a proposed ballot initiative that will let the people vote on LGBT rights
HJR 1059, as Stevenson sees it, is about “proactively allowing discrimination.” If approved by voters, it would amend the state constitution to allow any religious organization, along with “any other private business or individual” to refuse to recognize any same-sex marriage. They would be able to refuse to provide services on this basis and remain immune to lawsuits or any consequence from the government.
This might be news to some Sooners, but voting on the rights of a minority isn't constitutionally protected. Just sayin'.
Anyway, these are just a couple lowlights—there's more where this came from. Looks like Indiana hasn't cornered the market on bigotry yet.