Emotional Whiplash

 It’s taken a bit for me to process how I feel about yesterday.  My daughter and I traveled to our state capitol to testify before the Public Health Committee of the Texas House.  If you’re not aware, Texas has the most anti-LGBTQ bills moving through the process of any state in the US.  This week was a particularly onerous week for hearings on these kinds of bills.  

Some bills aim to make it a criminal offense to get gender affirming healthcare for transgender children or for doctors to provide that treatment.  Other bills punish doctors who provide this care by making it impossible for them to obtain malpractice insurance.  Other bills make it legal for any medical provider (even pharmacists!) to deny care to anyone based on their personal religious, moral, or ethical beliefs.  Proponents of this last bill say the law is “about procedures, not people” but when you ask them to include language that you can’t deny care to a patient based on race, age, disability, religion, gender, identity or orientation, they refuse.  So it is about people.   

Back to the feelings.  All day, I felt both powerful and powerless.   

• Arriving at the capitol to participate in democracy:  POWERFUL!
• Finding no information desk or state employees to help:  powerless.
• Registering to testify against dangerous legislation:  POWERFUL!
• Seeing armed guards with machine guns in the hallways:  powerless.
• Meeting other advocates, parents, and transgender individuals:  POWERFUL!
• Learning they delayed the process so it may go till midnight:  powerless.
• Speaking at a press conference in support of healthcare privacy and equity:  POWERFUL!
• Being heckled by opponents with words and disgusted looks:  powerless.
• Meeting with our affirming state representative:  POWERFUL!
• Seeing a dangerously unaffirming representative lead a male prayer circle:  powerless.
• Dropping off my card with that same dangerous rep and requesting meeting:  POWERFUL!
• Hearing testimony from people who don’t care if my child will be affected:  powerless.
• Giving personal testimony to the committee:  POWERFUL!
• Hearing that testimony is cut off early and my daughter won’t be heard:  powerless.

I was the only person opposing these bills who spoke from a faith perspective.  As I listened to the opposition, they spoke as if they were the moral compass for all people while dismissing the discriminatory healthcare experiences of LGTBQ Texans. 

In my testimony I reminded them that if they feel supporting these bills makes them defenders of the faith, they need to hear this:  the condemnation of LGBTQ people at the hands of Christians makes some want to kill themselves.  If your theology inspires thoughts of suicide, it is not the fruit of the Spirit.  I also proclaimed that my child is created in God’s image and she is not broken.  She has a unique perspective to serve the world for a good purpose ordained by God. 

I was overwhelmed by the feedback and tears from listeners who thanked me for speaking as an affirming Christian.  There is a misperception that Christians are not affirming of their LGBTQ neighbors.  Some aren’t, but many are.  My belief that LGBTQ individuals are sacred and whole isn’t in conflict with my faith but because of my faith.  If you agree, speak up.  When you call or email your elected officials, tell them you are a Christian (or other faith) and you oppose any anti-LGBTQ legislation.  POWERFUL!

For the public testimony on HB1424, (I speak at about 5:08 in the video) link here...  https://tlchouse.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=46&clip_id=20320&fbclid=IwAR1X-g-FYWZiJePgT_X1QJM1MUBSz-v1E8fii7g81Lk9UDKocMHdjfrLPnU