HELENA, Mont. (AP) – Montana schools will no longer be able to punish students who intentionally misgender or kill their transgender classmates under a Republican-backed legislative proposal that opponents argue would increase bullying of children who are already fighting for acceptance.
The proposal, sponsored by more than two dozen GOP lawmakers, would state that it is not discrimination to use transgender classmates’ legal names or refer to them by their birth gender. Schools will be prevented from implementing policies to punish students who do so.
It comes amid a wave of legislation this year in Montana and other conservative states that seeks to limit or ban gender-affirming medical treatment for transgender youth. The Montana Senate passed a ban on gender-affirming medical treatments or surgeries for minors on Wednesday.
But the proposal on misgendering and deadnaming appears to be the only law of its kind in the country this year, said Olivia Hunt, policy director for the National Center for Transgender Equity.
“This will make Montana unique in enshrining the right to be bigoted toward or the right to bully trans children in state code,” Hunt said.
The proposal would not apply to teachers, but several states are considering bills that would protect teachers’ rights to call students by their birth name and gender.
The main sponsor, Rep. Brandon Ler, said Wednesday during the hearing that his children, who live on a farm and ranch, “have learned from a very young age that a cow is a cow and a bull is a bull” and it is not open to interpretation.
“Kids shouldn’t be forced to call someone they’re not,” Ler said.
Opponents agree that students who accidentally use the wrong pronoun or name should not be penalized, but schools should still be able to respond to intentional misgendering and deadnaming, possibly under anti-bullying policies. Refusing to recognize transgender students’ chosen names and pronouns is bullying, said SK Rossi, testifying on behalf of the Human Rights Campaign.
“The problem with the bill is that it takes away the ability of schools and teachers and administrators to intervene when violent incidents occur, before they become physical,” Rossi said.
The issue of punishment for misgendering or deadnaming does not appear to be a problem in Montana, according to Emily Dean, director of advocacy for the Montana School Boards Association. He said he was not aware of any student being disciplined for such behavior.
Max Finn, a transgender high school student from Missoula, said he faced backlash from his peers, including rude comments about him and being thrown in the hallway, despite his teachers trying to stop it.
“When my teachers couldn’t or wouldn’t intervene, it got worse,” Finn said.
People representing educational organizations, pediatricians, parents of transgender children and students testified against the bill, saying it would lead to bullying and harassment, as well as anxiety and depression among transgender students.
Layla Riggs told lawmakers about defending a friend who was harassed because she was transgender or gender nonconforming. Someone once bullied her and a nonbinary friend after school, she said.
“School is supposed to be a place of acceptance and a place where your safety should be one of the top priorities,” Riggs testified. “With this bill, even the illusion of safety for transgender and nonbinary students will disappear.”
A survey by The Trevor Project in 2022 found that 45% of LGBTQ youth seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year, but those who were supported socially or at school reported lower rates.
Jeff Laszloffy with the Montana Family Foundation told lawmakers his group supports the measure because it would prevent students from facing civil lawsuits for using the wrong pronoun or name. He was the only proponent to testify at the hearing that ended without lawmakers voting on the measure.
Richard Schade told lawmakers that his 9-year-old nonbinary stepson was bullied daily with no intervention from school administrators.
“It shows that the purpose of the (bill) is to address a problem that doesn’t exist, and the real purpose is to send a message to trans kids that they deserve to be bullied for who they are,” she said. said.
During testimony against the bill, Montana Pride President Kevin Hamm intentionally misgendered Laszloffy and male lawmakers who previously sought to block opposition arguments that the bill would lead to bullying. Hamm says he wants to hear “her” reasons.
“Do they feel that misgendering is not a bullying tactic?” asked Hamm.
At that time, Rep. Amy Regier, chairwoman of the House Judiciary Committee, interrupted, saying: “Don’t attack the other testimony.”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Hamm replied. “What is bullying and assault? So you know what this bill will do. Thank you for proving my point. Don’t put tools for bullying into the law.