MEMPHIS, Tenn. — LGBTQ+ advocates from across the country are making their voices heard in Washington, D.C.
On Feb. 29, organizations like OUTMemphis met with President Joe Biden's administration to help foster connections between the White House and LGBTQ+ communities in red states like Tennessee.
ABC24 caught up with Molly Quinn, executive director at OUTMemphis, ahead of Thursday’s meeting. Quinn told our team a big goal heading into the meeting was to paint a picture for elected leaders about the struggles facing the Memphis community and areas across the Mid-South.
“The anti-trans and anti-LGBTQ policy and rhetoric has escalated so significantly,” Quinn said. “My goal will be to try and communicate the deep needs and trauma that our communities here in Memphis and other states like Tennessee are going through due to the political environment.”
In Tennessee alone, 17 new bills and another five potential bills have been placed on the Tennessee Equality Project 2024 Slate of Hate. Those 22 bills are listed as discriminatory toward the LGBTQ+ community directly or hold the potential to have harmful implications.
One of those bills, HB1605, just cleared the Tennessee House earlier this week, which would effectively ban schools from displaying Pride flags. Now eyes are on the Senate to vote on the bill. A version of the bill passed committee earlier in February by a vote of 5-4.
“In many ways state legislators do not represent the interests of the people, and LGBTQ people are not represented in the choices that are made,” said Quinn, who urges elected officials to put more effort to defending LGBTQ+ rights. “The truth is we need so much more help, and so much more power, and so much more muscle in the fight for trans justice and queer and LGBTQ+ justice.”
According to data from the Movement Advancement Project, Tennessee, Arkansas and Mississippi are considered as states with policies that negatively impact lives of LGBTQ+ people. Tennessee bans local governments from passing non-discrimination laws. Arkansas has a "Don’t Say Gay" law banning discussion of LGBTQ+ people or issues in schools. In Mississippi, the state explicitly defines "sex" to exclude transgender people.