Skip to main content

Congresswoman Salinas on H.R. 5, Republican-Led Attacks on LGBTQI+ Children

March 24, 2023

Today, Congresswoman Andrea Salinas (D-Tigard) issued the following statement after the House voted to pass H.R. 5, a Republican-led bill that attacks on LGBTQI+ children and families:

“Two weeks ago, Republicans on the Education and Workforce Committee passed a bill that would effectively ban all transgender and intersex kids from participating in sports. It was their first piece of legislation of the 118th Congress, making it clear that their top priority is bullying vulnerable kids – not tackling the many real problems facing our children and our schools, like abysmal teacher pay or the ever-present threat of gun violence on campus.

“Today, they’re back at it with another mean-spirited bill that would further ostracize LGBTQI+ students and families. Worse still, this bill would actively endanger children by requiring schools to “out” them to their parents, even if their home environment is unsafe. I urge my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to consider the weight of their actions. 2023 is already a record year for anti-LGBTQI+ laws in the United States, breaking the previous record set in 2022 – a year when 45% of LGBTQI+ youth seriously considered suicide. This hateful legislative agenda will have a ruinous effect on LGBTQI+ kids’ mental health – and could quite literally cost lives, if it does not stop.”

 

###

 

Issues:Civil Rights