Cheers erupt after Republicans kill attempt to erase trans people from Iowa civil rights law

A proposed change to Iowa’s civil rights law was so drastic and loathsome that even Republicans refused to entertain the idea. The bill would have stripped transgender people from the state’s civil rights law.

A crowd of hundreds erupted into cheers when the members of a subcommittee who had heard an hour of testimony against the bill announced they would not advance it any further. The committee was composed of two Republicans and a single Democrat. The vote was unanimous.

Related: Iowa students stage “We Say Gay” walkouts across the state

A wave of anti-LGBTQ+ proposals is sweeping through the Iowa legislature.

House Majority Leader Matt Windschitl (R) also condemned the measure, saying, “I don’t think that that would be the wise choice or the wise thing to do.”

Never Miss a Beat

Subscribe to our daily newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights.

Windschitl is not a member of the subcommittee. He confirmed that without the three legislators’ approval, the bill would not advance to a vote either at the House Judiciary Committee or on the house floor.

One of the most impassioned testimonies offered against the bill came from Aime Wichtendahl, the state’s first transgender elected official. Wichtendahl is a Hiawatha City Council member.

“You seem to think that being trans is some kind of ideology, so I will say it plain,” she said. “There is no such thing as transgenderism, there is only transgender people. We are human beings. We are American citizens. We are Iowans. And we do not deserve this abuse that we are getting from our government.”

Grassroots organizing works. Thank you for showing up and showing out for LGBTQ Iowans. Together, we were able to stop HF 2082 from advancing and the civil rights protections for transgender Iowans have been preserved.