This year’s Pride celebrations come at a dark and uncertain time for Louisiana generally and especially for the LGBTQ community.
Led by Gov. Jeff Landry and a cadre of hateful members of the state legislature, Louisiana lawmakers this year passed several bills targeting the queer community. Most troublingly, these measures seem designed to purposefully attack children and young adults.
Take the so-called “Bathroom Bill” that lawmakers passed last month. There is no evidence showing trans people using a bathroom aligning with their gender puts anyone at risk. On the other hand, there is clear evidence that forcing trans people, particularly trans women, to use the opposite gender’s bathroom puts them at increased risk of assault and rape. This is especially true in the spaces specifically targeted under the bill: prisons, shelters for the unhoused, and school settings where bullying queer kids is already a major safety concern.
Sadly, lawmakers weren’t done there. Republicans swiftly and overwhelmingly moved this state’s version of a “Don’t Say Gay” bill, limiting what topics students and teachers can talk about in classrooms around the state. In addition to being an affront to free speech, it is clearly intended to limit the rights of queer people. During consideration of the bill, Sen. Beth Mizell, R-Franklinton, one of the bill’s chief supporters, acknowledged the measure does not apply to cisgendered teachers discussing their relationships.
On May 28, the Senate approved a House bill forcing schools to use trans kids’ deadnames and pronouns. This pointless and cruel mandate serves no other purpose other than to target trans children.
From the relative progressive confines of Orleans Parish, it can be easy to see the threats to the rights and wellbeing of queer people as remote, particularly for those who aren’t members of the LGBTQ community. But one need only look as far as the 600 block of Iberville Street to be reminded of how imminent those threats are.
That’s where a man in April ripped out of the sidewalk a plaque commemorating the UpStairs Lounge fire and threw it in the trash. The 1973 arson took 32 lives and was the deadliest attack on the LGBTQ community in the United States until the 2015 shooting at Pulse Nightclub in Florida. Even in progressive New Orleans, it took nearly 50 years for City Hall to publicly acknowledge the tragedy and apologize for its mishandling of the subsequent investigation and for the disrespect shown to those who died.
One hater’s removal of the plaque may strike some as a one-off or a purely symbolic snipe at the LGBTQ community, but memorials carry enormous weight and convey important messages — particularly at a time when elected leaders publicly deride trans people because they know it has become acceptable in many quarters.
That, however, is what makes New Orleans' annual celebration of LGBTQ life so important. The annual Pride parade and events across our city during June are a powerful symbol of queer existence, joy and resistance.
The media has a responsibility to constantly remind ourselves and our readers that trans peoples’ right to exist is a fundamental human right that is not up for debate.