All in for Equality Coalition held a press conference in Austin to discuss their lawsuit to stop SB 14 fro going into effect on Sept. 1. (via Instagram)
Members of the All in for Equality Coalition along with plaintiffs and lawyers in the Loe v. Texas case spoke about the ongoing fight to stop SB14, a law that bans health care for trans youth, from going into effect on Sept. 1. They held a press conference in Austin at noon today (Aug. 16).
Speakers included Ricardo Martinez, CEO of Equality Texas, said SB 14 allows some parents to make healthcare decisions. Parents of trans kids can’t.
He noted hate crimes against trans people is up and he called that unacceptable.
Attorney Brian Klosterboer with the ACLU of TX is on the legal team suing to block the law from going into effect.
“No trans child should have to go to court just for the right to exist,” he said. “No doctor should have to go to court just to practice medicine.”
As written, the law violates the right for parents to choose medically indicated healthcare for their children. It targets trans kids not the treatment which is still available for other diagnoses and available to cisgender children. And SB 14 violates the rights of doctors whose practices are based on science, he said.
Klosterboer called the law “unconstitutional,” and said he was “asking the court to block the law from going into effect on Sept. 1.”
Human Rights Campaign’s Texas State Director Melodía Gutiérrez threw her organization’s support behind the lawsuit and commented on the legislative session.
“We had hoped this session would address real issues like fixing the grid,” she said wryly.
Transgender Education Network of Texas Executive Director Emmet Schelling said, “If you take one thing away from here today, cruelty is the point of this.”
Also speaking and among the coalition were Marti Bier, Vice President of Programs, Texas Freedom Network; Lynly Egyes, Legal Director, Transgender Law Center; Alex Sheldon, Executive Director, GLMA and Brian Bond, CEO, PFLAG National.
— David Taffet
