BECK: [Violence Against Women Act] now protects the nebulous concept
of gender identity defined in Title 18
as actual or perceived gender related characteristics
New gender identity laws
allow male people to claim womanhood the Violence Against Women Act has become
the violence against anybody act
Its original sex-based protections are now
meaningless because men with gender identities who commit violence against
women are protected by federal law.
LESKO: Do you think it's a concern
that there are people that might be gaming the laws and pretending I guess
that they're women in order to attack women in let's say a domestic violence
shelter designed for women?
BECK: Of course and this is already happening like I talked
about Karen Wood the male rapist who took advantage of these allowances we
know that predatory men will do anything to gain access to victims this is a
legal disaster because predatory men are already taking advantage of gender
identity the legislation in order to gain access to women and girls
LESKO: I did talk to one of the big organizations in Arizona that I'm involved with that
helps domestic violence victims and they have said there has been a number of
instances where they've had to deal with it where men I guess are pretending or
that they're a woman I don't know
CICILLINE: Madam chair I would ask for a
point of personal privilege I think the suggestion that transgender individuals
are pretending they are of a different gender is deeply offensive.
BECK: You mean sex.
CICILLINE: I would ask—
LESKO: Thank you sir and maybe that's not the right word
I actually talked
to the people with the boots on the ground that have domestic violence
shelters and maybe that's not the right word and I didn't intend it to be
offensive but people that males who were identifying as a woman we're
actually trying to find the women in the domestic violence shelters
STEUBE: Let's go ahead I had a series of questions that she was asking
Mr. Cicilline had said
something about that he she used language regarding transgender that was
offensive could you?
BECK: Sure thank you acknowledging biological sex
is not inhumane it's actually inhumane to force women to share intimate spaces
with male people who call themselves women so I don't see any problem with
calling someone male or female man or woman because these are words that refer
to biological reality.
Gender itself you know femininity or masculinity
that's not important and like I said we need to acknowledge biological sex doing
so is not inhumane people whose people who self identify as transgender are
human they're people right but that doesn't mean that I have to kowtow to
their identity I can still call someone who identifies as a transgender woman a
man because he is a man he's male.
The title 9 is basically moot now because
men can be women.
STEUBE: So just to follow up on that so if a biological man identified
as a woman to run in this track meet and then they can now qualify for those funds.
BECK: Exactly. And that's a problem
CICILLINE: Before I begin my questioning I want to set the
record straight with some facts whether or not the minority witness believes
that transgender people exist it is a fact they do and despite her effort to
decide the sexual orientation and gender identity of the entire population of our
country that is not her right in fact transgender, gender non-conforming and
gender fluid people are disproportionately survivors of violence
They deserve to access services consistent with their needs and I'd like
to offer a few examples of the challenges that transgender Americans face.
According to the U.S. transgender survey which surveyed nearly 28,000
transgender adults, almost half of transgender individuals had been
sexually assaulted in their lifetime.
The Human Rights Campaign found that at
least 128 transgender individuals have been killed since 2013.