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Nebraska Republicans Ban Abortions at 12 Weeks and Gender-Affirming Care for Youth

HeadlineMay 22, 2023

Back in the U.S., Nebraska’s Republican-led Legislature passed a bill banning abortion after 12 weeks and gender-affirming treatment for transgender youth. Republican Governor Jim Pillen has backed the bill and said he will sign it.
At least six people were arrested Friday as protesters interrupted legislative debate at Nebraska’s Capitol building in Lincoln. State Senator Megan Hunt, whose son is transgender, has joined state Senator Machaela Cavanaugh in a months-long filibuster to block the measure. She’s delivered blistering rebukes of her Republican colleagues who pushed through the bill. She spoke last Wednesday.

Sen. Megan Hunt: “This person said that they had attempted suicide during this session in Nebraska, a trans person. And I said to them, 'Do not let one of these trash people who I work with be the reason that you're not here. They don’t matter. The potential you have for the rest of your life is so much bigger than the damage any of these trash people can do in their little four-year or eight-year term.’ … Senator Kauth has stood up and said that trans kids are suicidal and depressed because they’re trans. No, it’s because of bullies like her, who are trying to legislate their existence and take away their right to be viewed as fully human in our culture and society.”

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