NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Today the Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee stopped advancement of a bill that would have insulated teachers and school employees who choose to harm or discriminate against transgender students by purposefully misgendering them from any accountability or adverse action.
SB 2777/HB 2633 passed the House earlier this week, but the Senate Finance, Ways & Means Committee sent it to the heel of the calendar today, which means that the bill will not advance any further this year.
Henry Seaton, ACLU of Tennessee transgender justice advocate had this reaction:
“We are profoundly grateful to the members of the Senate Finance, Ways and Means committee, whose decision not to advance this dangerous bill affirms that discrimination and hate are not welcome in Tennessee schools. Trans children and youth already face unprecedented amounts of discrimination in education, from not being able to use their correct name to multiple forms of harassment and bullying. Legislators’ action today is one step in the right direction toward protecting this vulnerable population, and we commit to doing everything we can to move our state forward in the fight for fair and equal treatment of all trans people. We hope that trans children across the state are comforted by the failure of this bill, and further believe that they are valued in the classroom.”
The ACLU of Tennessee recently launched TRANScend Tennessee, a program to educate the public about trans lives in Tennessee, to support and empower transgender Tennesseans, and to change the public narrative about what it means to be transgender in the state.
More information on TRANScend Tennessee can be found at: https://www.aclu-tn.org/transcend-tennessee/.
