Gov. Reynolds signed the legislation, calling it a step to ’safeguard the rights of girls and ladies.‘ A transgender lawmaker stated the legislation goals ’to additional erase us.’
Iowa on Feb. 28 turned the primary state within the nation to take away gender identification protections from its civil rights code.
A legislation signed by Gov. Kim Reynolds eliminates “gender identification” as a protected class and redefines authorized phrases associated to intercourse and gender in state legislation.
“Earlier than I signed this invoice, the Civil Rights Code blurred the organic line between the sexes. It has additionally compelled Iowa taxpayers to pay for gender reassignment surgical procedures. That’s unacceptable to me, and it’s unacceptable to most Iowans.”
Iowa’s civil rights code prohibits discrimination in schooling, employment, housing, and public lodging. Moreover, it legally defines “male” and “feminine” based mostly on reproductive anatomy and states that “gender” shall not be interpreted as a synonym for gender identification or gender expression.
Reynolds stated that the invoice aligns Iowa’s legal guidelines with the federal Civil Rights Act and insurance policies in most different states. She additionally pointed to earlier state legal guidelines limiting transgender participation in sports activities and the usage of sure public areas, saying this measure reinforces these protections.
“All of us agree that each Iowan, with out exception, deserves respect and dignity. We’re all youngsters of God, and no legislation modifications that,” Reynolds stated. “However what this invoice does accomplish is to strengthen protections for ladies and ladies, and I imagine that’s the proper factor to do.”
Democratic state Rep. Aime Wichtendahl, the primary overtly transgender legislator in Iowa, criticized the legislation as “anti-trans.”
“The aim of this invoice … is to additional erase us from public life and to stigmatize our existence,” Wichtendahl stated. “The sum whole of each anti-trans invoice and anti-LGBTQ invoice is to make our existence unlawful, to power us again into the closet.”
These insurance policies have confronted authorized challenges, reflecting a wider nationwide debate over gender identification.
Katabella Roberts contributed to this report.