#Zooey Zephyr

[crazygnomenclature]

After seeing Representative Zephyr kick major legislature ass, she deserves to wield a massive mallet in the chambers.

Seeing clips of Zooey Zephyr stand up against anti-trans legislation has helped renew hope in me that there are ways we can still fight horrendous policies targeting queer people. She is an inspiration and I cannot express how much I appreciate having her fighting in the fray for our rights. Representation definitely does matter.

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[dandelionsresilience]

Dandelion News - March 1-7

Like these weekly compilations? Tip me at $kaybarr1735 or check out my Dandelion Doodles! I’m almost finished with February’s doodles, sorry for the delay

1. Charles Darwin saw this Galápagos bird on Floreana Island in 1835, then it wasn't seen again for almost 200 years

“The Galápagos rail […] had been deemed locally extinct – and due for reintroduction from other Galápagos islands – until it was seen during recent fieldwork. [… “R]emove the invasive threats, and native species can recover in remarkable ways,” says Island Conservation’s Paula Castaño.”

2. Bill supporting free student meals passes through Utah legislature

“[The bill] would move thousands of students who qualify for reduced-cost school meals into eligibility for free breakfasts and lunch. […] H.B. 100 secures $2.5 million from the state’s education budget to help students from families who do not qualify for federal aid like SNAP or TANF.”

3. Indigenous leaders sign landmark carbon deal in Philippines

“[The deal establishes] the country’s first locally owned forest carbon project. The project, which places a monetary value on the potentially climate-warming carbon stored in trees, aims to halt deforestation through the sale of carbon credits — effectively making the forest more valuable alive than cut down.”

4. Powerful Speeches From Trans Dems Flip 29 Republicans, Anti-Trans Bills Die In Montana

“Transgender Reps Zooey Zephyr and SJ Howell delivered powerful speeches on the Montana House floor on Thursday. Republicans defected en masse to join them in voting against anti-trans bills. […] One Republican even took the floor to deliver a scathing rebuke of the bill’s sponsor.”

5. Illinois proves states have a lot of power to advance clean energy

“[Two new bills] aim to evaluate the state’s current power grid, make it easier to expand the transmission system, and add a ton of new battery storage[…. Illinois already] has one of the cleanest grids in the nation thanks to bountiful nuclear power.“

6. ‘I feel real hope’: historic beaver release marks conservation milestone in England

“”We are visibly, measurably recovering nature and that is so exciting[….]” [… In] recent years, beavers have been returning to our waterways via licensed releases into enclosures and some illegal releases. […] Last week, the government announced that, with a licence, it is now legal for conservationists to release beavers into the wild, with no enclosures necessary.”

7. One of South Dakota’s largest wind farms just got the green light

“Invenergy says the new South Dakota wind farm will pump $78 million into landowner payments over the next 30 years, while local governments will see $38 million in property tax revenue. [… T]he project is expected to create 243 construction jobs and support eight long-term operational roles.”

8. The Antarctic ozone hole is healing, thanks to global reduction of CFCs

“[The] new study is the first to show, with high statistical confidence, that this recovery is due primarily to the reduction of ozone-depleting substances, versus other influences such as natural weather variability[….] "By something like 2035, we might see a year when there's no ozone hole depletion at all in the Antarctic.””

9. Monarch butterflies wintering in Mexico rebound this year

“The number of monarch butterflies wintering in the mountains west of Mexico City [doubled] in 2024 despite the stresses of climate change and habitat loss[….] Tavera Alonso credited ongoing efforts to increase the number of plants the butterflies rely on for sustenance and reproduction along their flyway.”

10. Pip in final egg means bald eagles Jackie and Shadow should soon be parents of triplets

“Triplets would be unprecedented for the eagles in a decade of observation. […] The [third] eaglet is "actively working on getting out of the egg." […] The two already-hatched chicks, who will be named by the public in the days to come, are "looking much stronger than they were even yesterday[….]””

February 22-28 news here | (all credit for images and written material can be found at the source linked; I don’t claim credit for anything but curating.)

[joyousjoyfuljoyness]

I created this a couple years ago when Montana Representative Zooey Zephyr fought for trans rights and was censured.

Trans people exist, trans people belong, trans people should be protected.

I'm so disappointed and angry at SCOTUS, especially being a lawyer. I've been watching the iconic legal institutions I spend 3 years learning about and respecting... now crumble, twist and rot.

We must continue to fight!

[yourdailyqueer]

Zooey Zephyr

Gender: Transgender woman

Sexuality: Bisexual

DOB: 29 August 1988

Ethnicity: White - American

Occupation: Politician (Democrat), activist

Note: One of the first trans woman to be elected to the Montana legislature

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Vesper Henry at MMFA:

In February 2024, transgender teenager Nex Benedict was pronounced dead one day after a fight with three other students in their high school bathroom. Though Benedict’s death was officially ruled a suicide weeks later, national TV news contextualized the story within an increasingly hostile culture for trans people.

Beyond the scope of Benedict’s death — which received 85 minutes of total coverage across broadcast and cable news outlets — fatal violence against transgender Americans was covered for only 3 minutes throughout 2024.

Key findings

Nex Benedict’s death received 85 minutes of total coverage spanning 30 segments and 17 teasers or mentions across the three major cable news channels (CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC) and broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, and PBS) in 2024.

MSNBC aired the most coverage of Benedict’s death among cable news networks, with 34 minutes across 8 full segments and 8 teasers or mentions. CNN trailed behind with 23 minutes across 6 segments and 5 teasers or mentions. Fox News, with consistently low coverage of anti-transgender violence, featured only 10 minutes of coverage spanning 3 segments and 1 teaser.

Broadcast coverage of Benedict was scarce: PBS and CBS led with 6 minutes of coverage each, while NBC and ABC produced only 3 minutes of coverage each.

Montana state Rep. Zooey Zephyr and Asher Aven from the Trans Advocacy Coalition of Oklahoma were the only trans or gender-nonconforming guests across all coverage of Benedict’s death on broadcast and cable news in 2024.

More than half of all studied segments (16 of 30) contextualized Benedict’s death amid ongoing rhetorical and legislative attacks on transgender people.

At least 13 segments specifically named right-wing figures such as Oklahoma State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters and “Libs of TikTok” creator Chaya Raichik for their part in fostering a culture of anti-LGBTQ animus.

Walters appeared in two segments — both on Fox News — where he denied right-wing bigotry was a cultural factor that contributed to Benedict’s death.

At least 43% of segments called out right-wing figures by name for the real world impacts of their anti-trans agenda

Right-wing media’s anti-trans culture war has fostered numerous threats of violence. Anti-LGBTQ extremist Chaya Raichik — known for running the “Libs of TikTok” account online — often sets up the targets for such threats. Following Libs of TikTok’s online harassment campaign against Planet Fitness in 2024, at least 53 locations across the country received violent threats, and 38 other confirmed institutions, events, and individuals faced threats and harassment after being targeted by her account from 2022-2024. Right-wing media have fueled a rash of harassment, with anti-LGBTQ campaigns against Bud Light and Target materializing into violent threats as well. [Media Matters, 4/5/24, 11/2/23; Forbes, 6/1/23]

Oklahoma has been a hotbed for anti-LGBTQ legislation. Oklahoma was billed “the worst state” for anti-LGBTQ legislation last year, introducing 59 such bills by the beginning of February 2024. The state has already introduced 32 anti-trans bills so far this year, adding to the 114 proposed since 2022. [Reckon, 2/1/24; Trans Legislation Tracker, accessed 4/22/25, 2024, 2023, 2022]

State Superintendent Ryan Walters has used his office to partner with right-wing media pundits. Walters, once considered a potential nominee to lead the U.S. Department of Education, has allowed right-wing media figures — including Dennis Prager and Project 2025 architect Kevin Roberts — to write curriculum for Oklahoma schools. Weeks before Benedict’s death, Walters appointed Raichik to Oklahoma’s library board. [The Hill, 11/12/24; Media Matters, 10/6/23, 7/10/24; Oklahoma.gov, 1/23/24]

At least 13 segments on Benedict’s death held specific right-wing figures in media and government accountable. Guests and reporters alike named Walters, Libs of TikTok, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, and Republican state Sen. Tom Woods as chief instigators of anti-trans rhetoric. The governor was named for his role in signing anti-transgender laws in the state, and a segment on MSNBC’s The ReidOut made a reference to his claim that “gender ideology … is eroding the very foundation of our society.” Woods received scrutiny for calling the LGBTQ community “filth” following Benedict’s death. [MSNBC, The ReidOut, 2/21/24; Fox News, 8/1/23; CNN, CNN News Central, 2/26/24, 2/23/24]

After the suicide death of trans teen Nex Benedict, mainstream cable and broadcast news coverage held accountable the anti-LGBTQ+ influencers (such as Ryan Walters and Chaya Raichik) that helped fan the flames for Benedict’s death.

See Also:

MMFA: Corporate broadcast and cable news ignored fatal anti-trans violence in 2024

[trauma-tits]

From Erin Reed’s subscriber chat

Erin Reed Good news in Montana: For the first time this year, several Republicans broke rank and voted against a major anti-trans bill. 13 Republicans flipped, voted against a 25 year statute of limitations on transgender care, amending it down to 4 years. The previous bill would have said that if you transition, you can sue 25 years later if you decide to detransition, and the doctor HAS to pay under strict liability - even if they provided care perfectly. While the bill still is discriminatory, it will not kill care in this form. This comes a week after Rep Zooey Zephyr, full disclosure - my wife, delivered a powerful speech on the house floor. It seems that her speech got through, and several Republicans developed a conscience. This is notable - Republicans have seemingly voted for everything anti-trans this year in several states. This shows what representation in the highest halls of power can do. Several more anti-trans bills are coming tomorrow, many even harsher than this one, and we will see where they stand. But for now, it's nice to be able to report a little bit of good news. Feel free to join in chat.

[jasondamien93]

👏🏳️‍⚧️✊

[girl4music]

I am so overwhelmed right now. My mental and emotional state has done a complete 180 after watching these video recordings of trans and non-binary republican representatives in this meeting.

If we could see more genuine evidence that people are fighting back hard and are actually succeeding, I think a lot of us would have the strength and bravery to turn up to protests and state legislature meetings like these to fight back too and strike all these anti-trans bills down.

We merely only need to see the evidence that it works.

Evidence like this. This gives us hope and motivation.

Please please keep posting these recordings and documentations of people doing and achieving.

It helps more than you fucking know. Keep going!

[themosticonicseveredhead]

when i sat down to watch the 2023 World Forum for Democracy's "Women, Democracy and Peace" talk, i can safely say i did *not* expect Montana State Representative (and noted ttrpg enthusiast) Zooey Zephyr to quote Brennan Lee Mulligan, but i can hardly say i'm disappointed

truly a woman of the people

[our-queer-experience]

[image ID: a tweet from Erin Reed says “Paris is amazing, y’all. I’ve fallen in love with the city and even more in love with @ZoAndBehold. I know so much is going on at home, but I’m so glad to relax and see all the beautiful places we deserve to be in. - In Le Marais, a very lgbtq+ district in Paris :)”

the photo is of two women, zooey on the left and erin on the right, sitting at a restaurant. they’re both middle aged white women with brown eyes. erin has rainbow earings, eyeliner, and long brown hair. zooey has a baseball hat on and her hair is slightly less curly than erin’s. they’re both grinning and look incredibly happy. end ID]

[arctic-hands]

Oh hey, Rep. Zooey Zephyr and Erin Reed just got married

[alphie-in-the-sky]