Activists jammed the state Capitol on Monday to protest against any legislative effort to stem the flood of surgeries “turning” underage boys into girls and vice versa.
About 150 people flooded the Capitol, according to Newsweek.
Protesters carried signs saying “You can’t erase us” and “save trans lives,” according to Tulsa World.
“We are Oklahoma” https://t.co/qYqoKDiMNG pic.twitter.com/XG7L183PZX
— Nick Camper (@nickcamper) February 6, 2023
“This is our house” https://t.co/qYqoKDiMNG pic.twitter.com/XMoQ13NwKd
— Nick Camper (@nickcamper) February 6, 2023
But none of that dissuaded Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt from using his State of the State speech to call for a total ban on “gender transition” surgeries and hormone therapies for minors, according to KOCO-TV.
“We shouldn’t allow a minor to get a permanent gender-altering surgery in Oklahoma,” Stitt said.
“That’s why I am calling on the legislature to send me a bill that bans all gender transition surgeries and hormone therapies on minors in the state. As governor, I will never shy away from calling out right from wrong,” Stitt said.
“I will not be intimidated by partisan interest groups or make decisions based on groupthink. I will continue my responsibility to lead, not follow,” he said.
Many on Twitter mocked the protest, saying, “The hypocrisy of the left occupying a govt building like this is immense” and wondering if these protestors would be detained as were those who entered the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
The hypocrisy of the left occupying a govt building like this is immense
— Willa | Hi
(@GolfWore) February 7, 2023
So they’ll all be charged with trespassing and held indefinitely like the 1/6 trespassers, right?
— Bob (@councilofbobs) February 7, 2023
Even before the state’s legislative sessions opened, bills had been introduced to protect minors, according to KOKH-TV.
“Children and teenagers should be protected from bad peer influence and sometimes bad advice from adults from long-term repercussions they may not recognize,” said Republican state Rep. Jim Olsen, who has already introduced HB 1011 – a wide-ranging law to ban doctors from performing gender transition surgeries and hormone therapies on minors and banning the use of taxpayer dollars for such procedures.
“If you decide to go back to the way you were, you might partly get back there, but outside a miracle from God, you cannot fully go back,” he said.
Republican Lieutenant Governor Matt Pinnell said adults may legally do what they want, but minors deserve protection.
“We want to make sure that again, adults, that kind of transitioning for adults can happen but minors, we’re going to make sure that we protect kids in the state of Oklahoma, and it is not something that we would support again for minors,” he said.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
