Senate Democrats filibuster bills targeting transgender youth treatments

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

Democratic senators have been holding the floor for hours Wednesday, filibustering a bill that would sharply limit medical care for transgender children.

The bill discussed Wednesday is called the SAFE Act by supporters; it would prevent doctors from giving gender-transition surgery or treatment to minors.

This bill and several others were met with strong opposition in committee hearings. Crowds of LGBTQ+ advocates gathered in the Capitol to attend these hearings for four straight weeks. Much like Wednesday's filibuster, those hearings went for hours.

"We're doing things like this that I think is just going to make it harder for people to just live their lives, go to school, work, just be happy. I think a lot of what we're doing is making it more dangerous for transgender Missourians to be able to be a part of our society," said Sen. Tracy McCreery (D-St. Louis).

Republican leadership has identified LGBTQ+ issues as a priority this year. Legislative proposals include:

• Classifying drag shows as adult programs or criminalizing drag shows

• Preventing transgender girls from participating in girl's or women's sports in schools

• And preventing people from changing the gender on their birth certificate unless they undergo surgery

The goal of filibustering is not to just stall debate and hold the floor. Behind the scenes, senators are making deals and trying to come to a compromise.