John,

Anti-LGBTQ+ legislation is proliferating in state legislatures nationwide, particularly violent anti-trans legislation that ranges from Tennessee's laws targeting drag shows to Kansas' now-vetoed bill banning trans athletes from girls' and women's sports. And there are more: Oklahoma, Tennessee, Kentucky, Nebraska, and Florida also have movement on bills that ban or restrict gender-affirming care for youth and adults.

In fact, the ACLU is currently tracking 428 anti-LGBTQ+ bills in the U.S. We are facing a historic level of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation.

And anti-trans legislators are using the same playbook used to evolve and disseminate anti-abortion legislation. The initial bills give the illusion of protecting young people and normalize rhetoric that can then be used to draw back rights across the board.

Bills restricting trans rights and abortion rights seek to undermine our most basic privacies and liberties: to govern decisions about our own bodies.

These bills also create a culture of fear that stops doctors from providing care even when they might be allowed to, just like with anti-abortion legislation.

We need lawmakers right now to proactively protect trans kids, and we need to make sure that the GOP is not able to disguise these hateful, harmful bills as benign or well-intentioned.

Teachers who talk about the existence of the LGBTQ+ community don’t belong in handcuffs, and doctors providing gender-affirming care don’t belong in jail.

Our Care is Not Criminal Fund works to elect prochoice and pro-LGBTQ+ District Attorneys, Judges, and other critically important local leaders who can keep our communities safe and decriminalize gender-affirming care AND abortion care.

Our bodily autonomy should not be used to stoke a political base or to gain attention and fervor.

There is value in our fight, and we need our elected leaders to show up every day and fiercely stand up for what is right.

#VOTEPROCHOICE