Speaking at a gathering of conservative activists on Thursday, Gov. Kim Reynolds expressed her opposition to schools offering support to transgender students and called for a new law to restrict student access to books some conservative parents find objectionable. The governor characterized these proposals as part of her agenda of “parental rights,” a term she […]
transgender rights
Posted inCommunity/News
‘Mean-spirited’ bill restricting how teachers can support transgender students moves quickly through Iowa House
On Tuesday afternoon, the three members of an Iowa House subcommittee listened to an hour of testimony on HF 9, a bill aimed at preventing teachers and other school staff from acknowledging the identities of transgender students unless they first receive parental permission to do so. With only a few exceptions, the speakers testified strongly […]
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Student group demands University of Iowa ensure access to abortion, contraception, gender-affirming care and parental leave
On Thursday, graduate students and undergrads at the University of Iowa joined more than 60 universities and high schools across 29 states for The Day of Student Action for Reproductive Justice, a student-led protest urging governments and educational institutions to ensure access to abortion, contraception, sex education and gender-affirming healthcare. The Campaign to Organize Graduate […]
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Gov. Reynolds avoids answering questions about whether she would support banning abortion ‘without exceptions’
Gov. Kim Reynolds avoided giving a direct answer about whether she wants to outlaw abortions without any exceptions on Wednesday afternoon. As Reynolds was exiting a meeting in Marion’s Thomas Park, KCRG reporter Ethan Stein asked about her abortion stance. “Do you want the legislature to send you a bill that would ban abortion in […]
Posted inEastern Iowa
Iowa Supreme Court rules in favor of transgender worker in landmark employment discrimination case
In a decision handed down Friday morning, the Iowa Supreme Court unanimously upheld a 2019 jury verdict that found the Iowa Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination against transgender people based on their gender identity. Jesse Vroegh, a transgender man and former Iowa Department of Corrections (IDOC) employee, sued that agency and the Iowa Department of […]
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One Iowa among organizations to benefit from Ariana Grande’s trans youth fundraiser
In light of the International Transgender Day of Visibility and recent anti-trans legislation proposed and passed in states around the country, pop star Ariana Grande announced on Thursday the launch of her Protect & Defend Trans Youth Fund, to support 18 LGBTQ+ organizations that are “providing direct services and advocating for the rights of trans […]
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Iowa City students stage a walk out to protest Gov. Reynolds banning transgender girls from playing girls’ sports at school
More than 150 Iowa City Community School District students walked out of classes on Friday and marched to the Pentacrest to protest the newly enacted ban on transgender girls playing girls’ sports at all public and private schools, as well as at colleges and universities in Iowa. Planning for protest began among five friends at […]
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Surrounded by children, Gov. Reynolds signs bill banning transgender girls from playing girls sports in all Iowa schools
“Our state has an impressive legacy of advancing women’s equality,” Gov. Kim Reynolds said on Thursday, just before she signed into law a bill banning transgender girls and women from girls’ and women’s sports in Iowa schools, colleges and universities. HF 2416 restricts participation on all school or college girls sports teams and in all […]
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Iowa House Republicans approve ban on transgender girls in girls’ sports, extending the ban to colleges and universities
The Iowa House approved a bill to ban transgender girls from participating in girls’ sports at schools on Monday night, after amending it to extend the ban to community colleges and public and private universities. HF 2416 only received support from Republicans when it was passed by a subcommittee and the House Education Committee, but […]
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Republican majority on House Education Committee unanimously approves ban on transgender girls in girls’ sports
A bill banning transgender girls from participating in girls’ sports at school passed the Iowa House Education Committee on a party-line vote Monday, with all the committee’s Republicans voting in favor of it and all of its Democrats opposed. HF 2309 would restrict participation on all girls’ sports teams and in all athletic events for […]
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‘State-sanctioned bullying’: Iowa House Republicans advance bill to ban transgender students from playing girls sports
It was a forgone conclusion that a bill seeking to ban transgender girls from participating in girls sports at all Iowa schools would be approved by a subcommittee of the Iowa House Education Committee on Thursday, because the two Republicans on the three-person subcommittee are the bill’s co-sponsors. Rep. Skyler Wheeler and Rep. Henry Stone […]
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UI’s LGBTQ Clinic, a ‘haven’ for trans and nonbinary patients, marks 10 years of breaking down barriers
When Dr. Nicole Nisly met her first transgender patient, she didn’t know what to say. It’s common among healthcare providers. What name should I use? How should I refer to them? Should I ask? Her patient was a trans woman who had transitioned 10 years prior, and Nisly could feel the tension in the air. […]
