Rep. Pramila Jayapal, a former chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus whose child is nonbinary, has reintroduced a federal Transgender Bill of Rights three times. Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, a co-chair of the conservative Blue Dog Coalition who represents a swing district, has backed Republican bills restricting gender-affirming care for minors.
The two Washington Democrats come from opposite wings of their party. But this fall, with both up for re-election on the same ballot as a measure in their state targeting transgender athletes, they’ve landed in the same place — for much the same reason.
While Democrats speaking out against attacks on trans kids is not novel, how they’re doing so is noteworthy: Confronting the issue head-on, and turning conservatives’ own arguments about government overreach against them. |
