Kansas statehouse roils over lawmaker’s remarks скачать в хорошем качестве

Kansas statehouse roils over lawmaker’s remarks

(26 Apr 2022) RESTRICTION SUMMARY: ++SOUNDBITES SEPARATED BY BLACK FRAMES++ ASSOCIATED PRESS Topeka, Kansas - 26 April 2022 1. SOUNDBITE (English) State Rep. Stephanie Byers, (D) Kansas: "I think there has been a national push that we have seen to paint trans people as predators, as aggressors, to mostly look at trans women more than anything else in those roles, and to paint us as as villains and evil in our society. We know that the truth of matter is, is that when you look at the statistics, the odds of something happening in a restroom, violent-wise, are more inclined to happen to someone who is transgender than to someone who is cis." ++BLACK FRAMES++ 2. SOUNDBITE (English) State Rep. Stephanie Byers, (D) Kansas: "And so it's incredibly frustrating. We, you know, who doesn't want to live authentically, who does not want to present themselves for who they truly are and interact with people as who they truly are. And you then have someone telling you on a statewide level that that's not acceptable. It's incredibly frustrating and makes someone extremely angry. And it's heartbreaking because you would think that in the 21st century and in 2022, we would have moved beyond that." ++BLACK FRAMES++ 3. SOUNDBITE (English) State Rep. Stephanie Byers, (D) Kansas: " I think one of the things we have to be careful with is that trans youth see this and it puts up a roadblock for them as to being authentic. It puts a place of fear. But hopefully those trans kids also see people like me that step up and stand out and speak out against this and realize that there is hope, that there are people that don't just give in, that push and go beyond this." ++EDIT ENDS ON SOUNDBITE++ STORYLINE: LGBTQ rights advocates called Tuesday for a Kansas state lawmaker to be formally censured after she publicly said she didn't want to share the women's restrooms at the Statehouse with a transgender colleague. The Kansas House's top Republican called GOP state Rep. Cheryl Helmer's comments "unfortunate" and Democrats condemned them. The state's leading LGBTQ rights lobbyist saw "a new level of toxic bigotry" in Helmer's emailed remarks to a University of Kansas student and subsequent interviews about Democratic state Rep. Stephanie Byers. The furor over Helmer's remarks shadowed GOP lawmakers' attempt to override Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly's veto of a bill that would ban transgender athletes from girls' and women's K-12 and college sports. The Kansas Senate voted 28-10 on Tuesday to override Kelly's veto of the transgender athletes bill. A House vote will follow, but the timing wasn't clear. Byers told The AP in an interview Tuesday that Helmer's comments were frustrating. "And so it's incredibly frustrating. We, you know, who doesn't want to live authentically, who does not want to present themselves for who they truly are and interact with people as who they truly are. And you then have someone telling you on a statewide level that that's not acceptable. It's incredibly frustrating and makes someone extremely angry," Byers said. Byers, 59, is a retired Wichita high school music teacher and band director who was elected to the House in 2020. Helmer said she tried to make a point when she mistakenly entered a men's restroom in the House in early 2021. The men, she said, were surprised and upset, so she asked them how they would like it if a woman regularly used their restroom. Pressed on the issue Monday evening, she said parents shouldn't be allowed to "change" their child's gender. =========================================================== Clients are reminded: Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...