Republican lawmakers in Montana voted en masse to help defeat two extreme anti-trans bills in an unprecedented move on Thursday, after powerful speeches from two trans representatives imploring them to reject the latest intent to criminalize gender nonconformity.
State representative Zooey Zephyr spoke out against a bill that sought to ban drag performances and Pride parades in Montana, introduced by a Republican member of of the house who has referred to transgenderism as a “fetish based on crossdressing”.
“At its very core, drag is art. It is very beautiful art. It has a deep history in this country, and it is important to my community,” said Zephyr. “I am here to stand before the body and say that my life is not a fetish. When I go to walk [my son] to school, that’s not a lascivious display. That is not a fetish. That is my family.”
State representative Caleb Hinkle introduced the bill after a previous drag ban was struck down by the courts, having been used to stop a Native American transgender woman from giving a history lecture at a library. The new bill would have granted private individuals the right to sue if a public drag show took place.
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