Des Moines, Iowa — A large crowd gathered at the Iowa Capitol Sunday afternoon for what organizers called a “rally to resist” bills in the legislature on LGTBQ issues.
Organizers like Keenan Crow of One Iowa urged rally-goers to call, email and visit with their legislators and tell them to vote no.
Several students addressed the crowd. Bekah Schurz, a junior at Carlisle high school, said the bills Republicans are advancing send a message that trans and queer Iowans do not belong here.
Hiawatha City Councilperson Aime Wichtendahl, Iowa’s first openly transgender elected official, urged the crowd to pay attention to candidates running for city councils and school boards who support banning books.
House Democratic Leader Jennifer Konfrst told the crowd Republicans are taking the state on a race to the bottom.
Republican lawmakers say they’re responding to parents’ concerns by proposing a ban on elementary classroom discussions of sexual orientation and requiring students to use the bathroom that matches the gender on their birth certificate. Bills that would ban puberty blockers and gender reassignment surgery for minors are also eligible for debate in the Iowa House and Senate.
