Johnson speaks out against anti-transgender bill

State Rep. Blake Johnson (D-Indianapolis) spoke on the House Floor this afternoon in opposition to Senate Bill 480. This bill would prohibit gender-affirming care for transgender minors, despite parental consent and physician approval.

Johnson offered the following remarks during debate on the bill:

“I rise today in opposition to Senate Bill 480.

“Often times, by passing legislation out of this Chamber, we send a series of messages and signals to the people of Indiana.

“This bill – for better or worse – indicates our values. We choose winners and losers. We suggest that some Hoosiers matter more than others, that some beliefs matter more than others.

“And today, with Senate Bill 480, we are sending a signal to a very specific group of Hoosiers; young people who are among our most vulnerable, our most isolated, our most likely to suffer from depression and suicidal thoughts. We say to them, not that we're here for them, but rather that there is in fact something wrong with them.

“We signal that in the eyes of the State, this population must be forced to fit our narrow understanding of identity, our myopic interpretation of the science and skewed version of the facts.

“We tell them that – if they are their true selves – they don't belong.

“Simultaneously, we are sending a separate signal to the most conservative segments of our state that – even though it doesn't affect their family, it doesn't infringe on their rights and it doesn't impact their  day-to-day lives, we've got their backs.

“But even worse than that, we don't just send those messages and signals.

“We go a step further and say that – even if they are wrapped in the love and support of their parents and they are pursuing the counsel of their doctors and therapists – these youth cannot even access the available tools to help them address their pain and their trauma and their depression and their suicidal ideation.

“It should not be the role of our government to cast people aside; to make their healthcare decisions for them and to push them further into darkness.

“This bill fails every test as it relates to compassionate, measured and reasonable leadership. I urge you to vote no.”