DES MOINES, Iowa (KMTV) — An Iowa group calling itself Moral Mondays, and made up of more than 30 progressive Iowa organizations, held a press conference targeting bills that the group sees as discriminatory toward the LGBTQIA + community.
The bills in question are aimed at tightening school policies and state law regarding gender identity and sexual orientation as well as restricting gender-affirming care for people under the age of 18.
“We have seen that every major medical organization in the country, including the Iowa Medical Society and the Iowa Academy of Pediatrics have shown that best standards of care support gender-affirming care for folks of all ages,” said Damian Thompson, Iowa Safe Schools. “So, to restrict this puts students at risk of increased negative mental health outcomes and suicidality — and ultimately gets in the way of the doctor-patient relationship.”
“The governor's ed bills – SF496 and HSB222 – are kind of all of the bad education ideas in one package, so it's got the 'don't say trans' up to k-5, or if they are in the same buildings in elementary school k-6,” said Keenan Crow with One Iowa.
Some bills have died this legislative session, including a ban on same-sex marriage.
The group says there are still many proposals left, which they're keeping an eye on.
The press conference took place following a Sunday rally in Des Moines called the Rally to Resist, which drew nearly a thousand people to protest what they say are bills targeting the rights of the LGBTQIA + community. Last week, hundreds of Iowa students also walked out of class at 47 schools in protest.
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