On April 23, Republican Alabama Governor, Kay Ivey, signed into law a bill that ensures transgender students participate in school sports with others of the gender they were born with.
This bill, HB 391, will effect children who are in the K-12 public school system.
Republican State Representative, Scott Stadthagen, sponsored the bill making the argument that the bill is to defend girl’s sports.
He said, “I feel sorry for the kids you’re talking about, I really do. But what about the females who have worked since they started at 4 years old, and they get to high school and all their dreams and scholarships yanked before their eyes?”
The LGBT+ support group, Human Rights Campaign’s, Alabama director, Carmarion D. Anderson-Harvey, was not pleased.
Anderson-Harvey argued the bill would risk a rise of bullying towards transgender students and elevated suicide rates.
She said, “Trans kids are kids. They deserve every opportunity like every other kid to play the sport they identify in.”