By MADDIE KIRKMAN
Staff Writer
South Dakota became the first state that passed an anti-transgender sports ban bill, which is Senate Bill 46. Senate Bill 46 bans trans-women athletes from competing on women’s sports teams. Lawmakers in Arizona, Alabama, Indiana, Kentucky, Oklahoma, and New Hampshire have introduced new measures targeting trans youth. In 2020, there were 79 anti-trans measures implemented. In 2021, there were 147 proposals aimed at transgender Americans. In 2022, LGBTQ+ activists already began the fight against the proposed 280 bills filed across the US. Gillian Branstetter, a trans advocate and media manager for women’s advocacy group, the National Women’s Law Center stated, “Unfortunately, I think we’re getting ready to watch a race to the bottom among legislators who are in competition to see who can do the most harm to trans kids,” also stating, “it is a hostile and dangerous trend that I’m sure we’ll see continue through the year”. Along with Senate Bill 46, there is a second bill to pass which is House Bill 1005. This bill would limit bathroom and locker room access in schools to one’s sex as assigned at birth, which will be keeping transgender students from using the facilities that match their gender identity. The total vote was 39-29 and the bill is moving to a Senate committee in the upcoming few days. The Trevor Project assigned a poll that came out to 85% transgenders and two-thirds of all the LGBTQ+ youth committee say that the recent debates have negatively impacted their mental health. They are stating that the two new bills reinforce the incorrect notion that all transgender students are not entitled to the same respect as all students. Seven similar bills were shot down in the previous years, which makes people have hope that these bills will fail as well.