Transgender youth, advocates urge rejection of bill banning medical treatments
The Montgomery Advertiser 10 mins ago Brian Lyman, Montgomery Advertiser
In a virtual press call on Tuesday, officials from the Human Rights Campaign, medical providers and families of transgender youth said the legislation would put legislators in the middle of family decisions on health care and would put a vulnerable population at considerable risk.
Phineas Fleming-Smith, a transgender youth, said during the call he did not want to be used as a “political pawn” by legislators.
“Why are you doing this?” he asked. “Why are you using your position of power to cause harm to kids?”
Alabama House committee delays bill that would expand definition of rioting
The Montgomery Advertiser 3/9/2021 Brian Lyman, Montgomery Advertiser
It was a lengthy discussion, heavy with the crimes of the past and the struggles of the present. And after about 90 minutes of debate, a legislative committee decided to keep it going.
The House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday delayed a vote on legislation from Rep. Allen Treadaway, R-Morris, that would expand the definition of rioting and punish cities that cut police budgets. Opponents said the definition of rioting in the legislation does not require an act to take place, and could make law enforcement the arbiters of what is and isn’t constitutionally-protected speech.