The Arizona bill that would condemn LGBTQ kids to "conversion therapy"

Forcing teachers to out students to their parents, Republicans would plunge kids into psychological torment

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The extremism of the Republican Party all across the states has been jarring, as the MAGA movement marches forward. Voter suppression laws have been most prominent, as are bills such as Texas’s horrendous anti-abortion bill which has essentially overturned Roe v. Wade in the state, allowing any citizen anywhere to file a lawsuit against anyone who “aides or abets” a woman seeking an abortion.

Then there are the racist “education” bills being proposed by the GOP, such as Florida’s “anti-woke” bill — pushed by GOP Governor Ron DeSantis — which wouldn’t allow teaching the history of racism and slavery if it makes white kids feel “discomfort.” This is coupled by Florida’s bill which passed a GOP-dominated committee which would ban educators from speaking about sexual orientation and gender identity and, like the Texas anti-abortion law — and the Florida “anti-woke” bill — would allow parents to sue teachers if they said something thought to violate the law.

And in Arizona there’s a bill that was passed out of committee in recent weeks that would have teachers report to parents if they become aware a student is gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender. Maybe they’ve overheard it, or they were confided in. Maybe the teacher just simply has a hunch. Whatever the case, they would face lawsuits from parents, if the bill is passed, if it’s shown the teachers kept the information from the parents.

Teachers who keep certain student confidences from their parents — like a disclosure the youth is gay — can be punished by the state, a House panel voted [last month].

HB 2161 would make it illegal for a government employee to withhold information that is “relevant to the physical, emotional or mental health of the parent’s child.” And the measure specifically bars withholding evidence from parents about a student’s “purported gender identity” or a request to transition if that identity “is incongruous with the student’s biological sex.”

Teachers that fail to call a parent could lose their certification. And parents can sue school districts that don’t provide them with that information.

🌊🌊🌊 PoliTees 🌊🌊🌊 @PoliticalTeeez

HB 2161 in AZ would force teachers to out their students to their parents. Such bullshit to take away safe space for these kids. #lgbtq #Arizona

tucson.comArizona bill would punish teachers for keeping student confidences from parentsHB 2161 would make it illegal for a government employee to withhold information that is “relevant to the physical, emotional or mental health of the parent’s child.” It specifically bars

The bill’s sponsor, GOP Representative Steve Kaiser, claimed it was for the well-being of the students — that they should get their parent’s help and support. This was laughable — and a complete lie. He didn’t consult with any LGBTQ groups or education groups that know full-well that only one-third of LGBTQ students, per surveys, feel safe telling their parents about their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Being exposed to their parents could drive many to harm themselves, as studies show 30% of LGBTQ students have contemplated or attempted suicide in a world that is horribly homophobic and transphobic, and where powerful religious leaders condemn them.

When Kaiser was called out by openly gay Democratic Rep. Daniel Hernandez, he was forced to admit that he’s only consulted with prominent anti-LGBTQ groups:

[W]hen Hernandez pressed him on which stakeholders were involved in drafting the bill, Kaiser admitted he didn’t work with education groups or teachers, but with anti-LGBTQ advocacy groups — chief among them the Center for Arizona Policy, a conservative Christian lobbying organization that has pushed numerous controversial and bigoted bills since forming in 1995. CAP holds sway with most Republican lawmakers and Gov. Doug Ducey, and is widely considered one of the most powerful lobbying groups at the state Capitol.

That made it clear what the goal is of this bill: To force kids out to their parents, many of whom might react negatively, even harshly, and a great many of whom might force their kids into damaging, psychologically harmful and scientifically-unfounded “conversion therapy” in a state where the practice isn’t banned among psychologists treating minors, as it is in some other states. The sponsors of this bill know that many parents who belong to conservative anti-LGBTQ evangelical or Mormon congregations might also send their children to religion-based groups to “pray-away the gay,” tormenting these kids and damaging them psychologically.

This is abominable, and part of the GOP extremism playing out nationally. Fighting back, a group of bipartisan legislators in Arizona this week introduced an LGBTQ anti-discrimination bill that would ban conversion therapy for minors and protect LGBTQ people statewide in housing, employment and public accommodations. Arizona is one of over the half of the states that do not have such protections.

The bill isn’t perfect, as it has religious exemptions — though not for bakers and florists and other private businesses — but it does have support of the Republican House leader, who is a sponsor of the bill. Still, it has an uphill battle, as GOP leaders said they wouldn’t move forward on it without a majority of Republicans supporting it, and the Senate and House are dominated by conservative Republicans, many now even more Trumpified.

The bill forcing students out of the closet to their parents is another example of how the MAGA movement — and the GOP in Arizona is certainly in the stranglehold of Trumpism — is an authoritarian movement hellbent on stripping civil rights and bringing us back to a time of McCarthyism, where teachers, administrators, neighbors and others turn in those who aren’t following a moral code. And it’s another alarm sounding on the threat to democracy.