#Rep Zooey Zephyr

[dogkitterblog]

An excellent show of what should be happening in our legislatures: republicans listening to how dumb and dangerous these anti trans proposals are

[xtruss]

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.

— Erin Reed | March 06, 2025

Something remarkable happened in Montana today. As has become routine, anti-trans bills were up for debate—the state has spent more than half of its legislative days this session pushing such bills through committees and the House floor, with Republicans largely voting in lockstep. But something changed.

A week ago, transgender Representative Zooey Zephyr delivered a powerful speech against a bill that would create a separate indecent exposure law for transgender people. Since then, momentum on the House floor slowed. Today, two of the most extreme bills targeting the transgender community came up for a vote. Transgender Representatives Zooey Zephyr and SJ Howell gave impassioned speeches—this time, they broke through. In a stunning turn, 29 Republicans defected, killing both bills. One Republican even took the floor to deliver a scathing rebuke of the bill’s sponsor.

The first bill to reach the House floor was HB 675, a measure that would ban drag performances and Pride parades in Montana. A previous drag ban had already been struck down by the courts after it was enforced against a transgender woman—who was not a drag artist—to prevent her from speaking about public history at a library. In response, the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Caleb Hinkle, introduced HB 675 to circumvent that ruling.

Rather than relying on state enforcement, this bill would grant individuals the private right to sue if a public drag performance took place, making it more difficult to challenge in court. During committee hearings, Hinkle went even further, calling being transgender "a fetish" and arguing that the law was necessary to prevent trans people from dancing in public.

And that’s when transgender Representative Zooey Zephyr took to the floor.

"Here I am again to rise on another bill targeting the LGBTQ+ community," she said, exasperated. "At its very core, drag is art. It is very beautiful art. It has a deep history in this country, and it is important to my community. You know, if you are a woman in this body wearing a suit today, you are in some way challenging gender norms that existed long ago… There were three-article-of-clothing laws 50 years ago that said if you wore three articles of clothing that were indicative of the opposite gender, they could stop you, arrest you… it was those laws that led to the police raiding an LGBTQ+ bar that led to the Stonewall riots, one of the most important civil rights moments in my community’s history," she began.

“When the sponsor closed on this bill, he said, this bill is needed… and I quote his words… ‘because transgenderism is a fetish based on crossdressing.’ And I am here to stand before the body and say that my life is not a fetish. My existence is not a fetish. I was proud within a month ago to have my son up in the gallery here. Many of you on the other side met him. When I go to walk him to school, that’s not a lascivious display. That is not a fetish. That is my family. This is what these bills are trying to come after… not obscene shows in front of children, we have the Miller test for that, we have laws for that. This is a way to target the trans community, and that is in my opinion, and in the speaker’s own words.”

Then something even more remarkable happened: A Republican, Representative Sherry Essman, rose to defend Rep. Zephyr and chastised the bill’s sponsor. “I’m speaking as a parent and a grandmother. And I’m very emotional because I know the representative in seat 20 is also a parent. No matter what you think of that, she is doing her best to raise a child. I did my best to raise my children as I saw fit, and I’m taking it for granted that my children are going to raise my grandchildren as they see fit,” she began.

“Everybody in here talks about how important parental rights are. I want to tell you, in addition to parental rights, parental responsibility is also important. And if you can’t trust a decent parent to decide where and when their kids should see what, then we have a bigger problem,” she turned to parental rights and spoke about how people who claim those rights should vote against the bill.

And then, she closed by chastising the bill’s sponsor for bringing the bill, “Trust the parents to do what’s right, and stop these crazy bills that are a waste of time. They’re a waste of energy. We should be working on property tax relief and not doing this sort of business on the floor of this house and having to even talk about this.”

Following the speeches, 13 Republicans, the most of any anti-trans bill this cycle, flipped and voted against the bill. See it as it happened here:

Were this all that happened, it would have been remarkable enough—such aisle-crossing has become rare in modern politics, and on transgender issues, it is almost unheard of. But Representative Zephyr is not the only transgender lawmaker in Montana. Representative SJ Howell, a powerhouse in their own right, took the floor when an even more extreme bill followed immediately afterwards—HB754, a measure that would remove transgender children from their parents. They had a powerful speech to deliver as well.

Representative Howell opened, "I stand to oppose this bill… When a state intervenes to remove a child from their family, that is one of the most serious and weighty responsibilities that the state has. That is not something to be taken lightly. Every time a child is removed from their family, it’s a tragedy. Sometimes a necessary tragedy, but a tragedy nonetheless. This bill does not come close to the seriousness with which those decisions should be contemplated."

They pointed directly to the bill’s language: "On page 1, line 19, any child protective service specialist, peace officer, or county attorney who has reason to believe any child is in immediate danger or harm may immediately remove the child. What we are adding… a child transitioning gender with the support of a parent or guardian is considered in immediate or apparent danger or harm."

Howell then turned to the bill’s vagueness and the dangers it posed to transgender children as well as any child who defies gender norms. "Transitioning gender is not defined in this bill… so what does that mean? Maybe it means, as the sponsor said, surgery or medical treatment. Maybe it means therapy, mental healthcare. Maybe it means a kid who gets a haircut and a new set of clothes. Maybe a name change… a legal name change, or someone who wants to try out a different name… a strict reading of this bill could include all of that."

They urged lawmakers to consider the real consequences. "Put yourself in the shoes of a CPS worker who is confronted with a young person, 15 years old maybe, who is happy… healthy… living in a stable home with loving parents, who is supported and has their needs met? And they are supposed to remove that child from their home and put them in the care of the state? We should absolutely not be doing that."

Then, the bill went to a vote. This time, the Montana Republican Party fully fractured—29 Republicans crossed the aisle to defeat it.

Watch it as it happened here:

Following the vote, Representative Zephyr took to social media to discuss the implications. “These kind of votes are born out of transgender representation in government,” she posted on her bluesky account. “Howell & I have built solid relationships with Republicans and those relationships change hearts, minds, and (eventually) votes. It is painful, grueling work. But it makes a difference.”

At a time when anti-trans bills are sailing through red-state legislatures, many are left wondering how they can be stopped. Some Democrats, like Gavin Newsom, have chosen appeasement—standing alongside anti-trans hate leaders like Charlie Kirk instead of standing up for transgender people. But Representatives Zooey Zephyr and SJ Howell offer a different path. As transgender lawmakers in a Republican-dominated government, they have shown that representation, relationships, and the power of speaking truth in hostile spaces can move hearts and minds. Their success is a reminder that even in the most challenging environments, refusing to back down can make a difference.

[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.)

[kenyatta]

Something remarkable happened in Montana today. As has become routine, anti-trans bills were up for debate—the state has spent more than half of its legislative days this session pushing such bills through committees and the House floor, with Republicans largely voting in lockstep. But something changed.

A week ago, transgender Representative Zooey Zephyr delivered a powerful speech against a bill that would create a separate indecent exposure law for transgender people. Since then, momentum on the House floor slowed. Today, two of the most extreme bills targeting the transgender community came up for a vote. Transgender Representatives Zooey Zephyr and SJ Howell gave impassioned speeches—this time, they broke through. In a stunning turn, 29 Republicans defected, killing both bills. One Republican even took the floor to deliver a scathing rebuke of the bill’s sponsor.

[...]

A Republican, Representative Sherry Essman, rose to defend Rep. Zephyr and chastised the bill’s sponsor. “I’m speaking as a parent and a grandmother. And I’m very emotional because I know the representative in seat 20 is also a parent. No matter what you think of that, she is doing her best to raise a child. I did my best to raise my children as I saw fit, and I’m taking it for granted that my children are going to raise my grandchildren as they see fit,” she began.

“Everybody in here talks about how important parental rights are. I want to tell you, in addition to parental rights, parental responsibility is also important. And if you can’t trust a decent parent to decide where and when their kids should see what, then we have a bigger problem,” she turned to parental rights and spoke about how people who claim those rights should vote against the bill.

And then, she closed by chastising the bill’s sponsor for bringing the bill, “Trust the parents to do what’s right, and stop these crazy bills that are a waste of time. They’re a waste of energy. We should be working on property tax relief and not doing this sort of business on the floor of this house and having to even talk about this.”

[nudityandnerdery]

When people say, "Well, they're the minority party, what do you expect the Democrats to do?" then point at this.

They can take a stand. Maybe it'll make a difference, maybe it won't. But silently holding up small signs and t-shirts aren't going to do anything.

[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.

[transpondster]

Something remarkable happened in Montana today. As has become routine, anti-trans bills were up for debate—the state has spent more than half of its legislative days this session pushing such bills through committees and the House floor, with Republicans largely voting in lockstep. But something changed.

A week ago, transgender Representative Zooey Zephyr delivered a powerful speech against a bill that would create a separate indecent exposure law for transgender people. Since then, momentum on the House floor slowed.

Today, two of the most extreme bills targeting the transgender community came up for a vote. Transgender Representatives Zooey Zephyr and SJ Howell gave impassioned speeches—this time, they broke through. In a stunning turn, 29 Republicans defected, killing both bills. One Republican even took the floor to deliver a scathing rebuke of the bill’s sponsor.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Erin Reed at Erin In The Morning (03.06.2025):

Something remarkable happened in Montana today. As has become routine, anti-trans bills were up for debate—the state has spent more than half of its legislative days this session pushing such bills through committees and the House floor, with Republicans largely voting in lockstep. But something changed. A week ago, transgender Representative Zooey Zephyr delivered a powerful speech against a bill that would create a separate indecent exposure law for transgender people. Since then, momentum on the House floor slowed. Today, two of the most extreme bills targeting the transgender community came up for a vote. Transgender Representatives Zooey Zephyr and SJ Howell gave impassioned speeches—this time, they broke through. In a stunning turn, 29 Republicans defected, killing both bills. One Republican even took the floor to deliver a scathing rebuke of the bill’s sponsor. The first bill to reach the House floor was HB 675, a measure that would ban drag performances and Pride parades in Montana. A previous drag ban had already been struck down by the courts after it was enforced against a transgender woman—who was not a drag artist—to prevent her from speaking about public history at a library. In response, the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Caleb Hinkle, introduced HB 675 to circumvent that ruling. Rather than relying on state enforcement, this bill would grant individuals the private right to sue if a public drag performance took place, making it more difficult to challenge in court. During committee hearings, Hinkle went even further, calling being transgender "a fetish" and arguing that the law was necessary to prevent trans people from dancing in public. [...] Were this all that happened, it would have been remarkable enough—such aisle-crossing has become rare in modern politics, and on transgender issues, it is almost unheard of. But Representative Zephyr is not the only transgender lawmaker in Montana. Representative SJ Howell, a powerhouse in their own right, took the floor when an even more extreme bill followed immediately afterwards—HB754, a measure that would remove transgender children from their parents. They had a powerful speech to deliver as well. Representative Howell opened, "I stand to oppose this bill… When a state intervenes to remove a child from their family, that is one of the most serious and weighty responsibilities that the state has. That is not something to be taken lightly. Every time a child is removed from their family, it’s a tragedy. Sometimes a necessary tragedy, but a tragedy nonetheless. This bill does not come close to the seriousness with which those decisions should be contemplated."

This week in good trans news: a pair of extreme anti-trans bills (HB675 and HB754) were killed in Montana with a sizable chunk of the GOP joining with the Democrats to vote them down.

See Also:

The Guardian: ‘Stop these crazy bills’: Republicans join Democrats to defeat anti-trans legislation in Montana

LGBTQ Nation: These lawmakers’ speeches were so powerful that 29 Republicans abandoned their anti-trans bill

[profnicsnort]

Erin Reed's Latest Trans Risk Assessment Map!

If you don't know who she is, Erin Reed is a journalist and activist (her wife is Zooey Zephyr, the trans MT Rep). She just released her latest map - a highly comprehensive map of how safe various states are for trans people and their likelihood to change for the worst in the next couple of years. I've been using her maps to help me choose places where I am applying for jobs.

[akrinorlordofthebanana]

For some hope in bleak times. To my siblings on the other side of the pond, keep fighting.