Author: Ivy Hawkins

In the last two months, transgender and queer rights have been under attack by the republican government in Tennessee. After banning gender-affirming care for minors and putting restrictions on drag shows, people in the queer community are both concerned and outraged.

On March 2, 2023, Governor Lee signed a bill that bans gender-affirming medical care for minors, beginning in July. In addition, on March 2, Tennessee announced that they will begin heavily regulating drag performances that take place in public spaces where children may see. 

The LGBTQ+ community is devastated after finding out that Tennessee is trying to ban all gender-affirming treatment for people under 18. This includes surgeries, hormones, and even hormone blockers. Hormone blockers allow transgender youth to prevent or postpone any changes that occur in the body during puberty, letting them explore their identity and possibly get on the hormones they want.

According to the National Institutes of Health, 82% of transgender youth have considered ending their lives and 40% have attempted suicide. The leading cause for this affliction among the community is the general stigma around the idea of transitioning.

Gender dysphoria is a term defined by the National Health Service as “a sense of unease that a person may have because of a mismatch between their biological sex and their gender identity.” The treatments being banned in Tennessee are what help transgender people alleviate their dysphoria and make them feel comfortable in their own skin. When you restrict struggling transgender youths’ use of these treatments, like hormones and hormone blockers, you’re making it harder for them to transition in the future.

Many say that the state is out of line and that this ban is unconstitutional, arguing that parents should make medical decisions for their children, not the government. Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, a mother of a gender-nonconforming child, said in a speech given at the house of Representatives: “My child is free to be who they are. And in that freedom comes a responsibility for us as legislators to protect that freedom to be who they are.”

Though many argue that the state is only enforcing these restrictions to protect kids from making changes to their bodies that they can’t reverse, an overwhelming majority of those saying these things are doing so because of prejudice. For example, political commentator, Michael Knowles, said during the Conservative Political Action Conference, “Transgenderism must be eradicated from public life entirely, the whole preposterous ideology.”

Another threat the LGBTQ+ community is facing at the moment is the regulation of drag in Tennessee. Drag is a form of performing art that commonly involves exaggerated displays of femininity and sometimes masculinity. Performers, often called either drag queens or drag kings, wear flamboyant makeup and clothes and often pair it with either dancing, singing, or comedy sets.

The art form will be banned from taking place on public property because of the possibility that a child might see. Specifically, the bill states that it will not allow “cabaret” performances to be put on in public near schools, parks, or churches. If violated, the performers may be charged with a misdemeanor or felony. The state says that children should not be exposed to adult entertainment, insinuating that all drag is inherently sexual.

Again, many argue that this is unconstitutional and goes against the first amendment as it infringes on free speech.

Famous drag queen, RuPaul Andre Charles, spoke out against the bill in an Instagram post wherein he states, “Drag queens are the marines of the queer movement.” And this is true. For example, During the stonewall riots of 1969, a famous drag queen who went by Marsha P. Johnson (born Malcolm Michaels Jr.) rose up as one of the leading activists of the queer movement and one of the first drag performers to have a public platform.

When asked how these bills will affect the LGBTQ+ community, Mx. Herold, a teacher here at McClatchy said, “I think this is a threat to the safety of the LGBTQ+ community. One of the things that worries me is fighting within the community.”

In response to what the queer community can do to push back, they said, “A lot of what we can do is protest. I’m afraid that this country will respond with violence. It’s terrible for people in those states because they shouldn’t have to leave their homes, but they’re being driven out.”

The LGBTQ+ community has forever been demonized by the uneducated, the conservatives, the republicans, Christians, etc. But it’s come a step too far with these bills that are being passed that explicitly infringe on their rights, whether it be to health care or to free speech. 

Halloween has been around for around 2,000 years. As you can imagine, the holiday has changed quite a bit since its early pagan beginnings. It originates in Europe as a festival called Samhain which celebrates the end of a harvest. Historians can track the tradition of wearing a costume on Halloween to 1585 in Scotland, which has since been sustained with activities like trick-or-treating and costume stores. Usually, these costumes depicted spirits and creatures from Celtic folklore. Now the usual costumes you’ll see are vampires, witches, ghosts, etc.

Unfortunately, there have been times when it was not uncommon to see costumes depicting racial and religious stereotypes.

One of the most common of these costumes is the Native American. There are many reasons why it is not ok to dress up as a Native. The history of murder and takeover of the Native Americans and their land for example, When the British came to America the Natives were not treated nicely, unlike what A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving might suggest. They were massacred and stripped of their land, and the ones that lived were put on reservations where they had to give up their spirituality and native languages. Children were placed in schools where they were forced to learn English and learn the Christian way, and many of them died from illness. So for non-Native Americans to be dressing up as their chiefs and dawning symbols that they don’t know the meaning of, you can imagine how upsetting it is.

Another example is blackface. Blackface was a practice in the early 20th century with “minstrel shows” where white men and women would rub burnt cork on their face in order to turn it black, they would then put on rugged clothes in order to make fun of African Americans. These shows depicted black Americans as being illiterate and stupid. Considering the history of blackface and the treatment of black Americans in general, these costumes are unacceptable.

Then there are non-racial costumes that are still incredibly insensitive yet very common. The homeless person, or “hobo”. People will make themselves look dirty and disheveled, as well as covering their faces in soot and carrying a bindle. To mock someone for being in a position that they never asked for is always horrible, especially when there are an estimated 116,600 people, just in California, being affected by the homelessness crisis. Many of these people lost their jobs or had jobs that didn’t pay the bills. Some suffer from mental illness or addiction and had no one to help them. A lot of teenagers are kicked out of their homes for being part of the LGBTQ+ community or for not holding the same religious standing as their families. There are hundreds of reasons why someone might be without a home, and to mock them and think of them as a disease is inhumane.

These are only a few examples of insensitive costumes that have been worn by Americans, there are so many more. America has a history of not recognizing other cultures and lifestyles as valid, and this only proves that. It seems to have gotten better these last few years but there are still things that as a society we can do better. And recognizing other cultures as something to respect and not mock is a good starting point.