RECEIVING GENDER-AFFIRMING
HEALTH CARE.
UNFORTUNATELY, ARKANSAS IS NOT
AN OUTLIER.
ACCORDING TO THE ACLUS LATEST
COUNT, LEGISLATORS IN MORE THAN
HALF THE STATES HAVE INTRODUCED
OR PASSED SOME TYPE OF
ANTI-TRANS LEGISLATION.
ITS NOT ALL BAD NEWS.
THIS WEEK PRESIDENT BIDEN BECAME
THE FIRST PRESIDENT EVER TO
RECOGNIZE THE TRANSGENDER DAY OF
VISIBILITY WITH THE PRESIDENTIAL
PROCLAMATION.
JOINING ME NOW ARE THE EDITOR OF
"THE NEVADA INDEPENDENT" AND MSNBC POLITICAL ANALYST JOHN
MSNBC POLITICAL ANALYST JOHN
RALSTON AND ARKANSASLYLI CHRISTI
TO TALK ABOUT I THINK ITS IN 28
STATES WHERE THERE ARE --
THEYRE CONSIDERING OR HAVE
PASSED ANTI-TRANS LEGISLATION.
WHAT IS MOTIVATING THIS?
OTHER THAN HATE.
>> YES, JONATHAN, WERE SEEING A
TERRIBLE WAVE OF
ANTI-TRANSGENDER BILLS ACROSS
THE COUNTRY.
AND, YOU KNOW, THIS IS NOTHING
NEW FOR THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY.
OVER THE YEARS, WEVE SEEN ALL
DIFFERENT TYPES AND WAYS TRYING
TO EXCLUDE LGBT PEOPLE FROM
DAILY LIFE.
THESE ATTACKS ARE PARTICULARLY E
EGREGIOUS.
ATTACKS ON YOUNG PEOPLE.
THEIR ABILITY TO PARTICIPATE IN
SCHOOL AND SCHOOL SPORTS, AND
SEEING ATTACKS ON THE ABILITY TO
ACCESS LIFE-SAVING GENDER
AFFIRMING HEALTH CARE.
SO THE NASTINESS AND THE MESSAGE
FROM ALL OF THESE IS WE DO NOT
WANT YOU HERE.
WE DONT WANT TRANSYOUTH IN OUR
SCHOOLS.
WE DONT INCLUDE YOU AND WE WISH
TO KEEP YOU OUT OF OUR DAILY
LIFE.
SO TERRIBLE.
>> YOU KNOWJOHN, I WANTED YOU ON
THIS SHOW AND IN THIS SEGMENT IN
PARTICULAR BECAUSE OF SOMETHING
YOU WROTE AWHILE BACK I ONLY SAW
A MONTH OR SO AGO.
ITS AN OP-ED FROM 2016,
ACTUALLY.
SO FIVE YEARS THAT YOU WROTE
ABOUT YOUR SON JAKE.
AND I WANT TO READ PART OF IT.
YOU WROTE, "THIS WEEK MADDY WENT
TO COURT AND BRAVELY TOLD THE
JUDGE WHY SHE WANTED TO BE A
MALE AND WANTED HER BIRTH
CERTIFICATE CHANGED, TOO.
AFTER THE HEARING WHEN IT WAS
FINALLY REAL, WHEN HE CALLED ME,
I DONT THINK IVE EVER HEARD MY
KID SOUND SO HAPPY.
HE WANTED THE STORY TOLD.
WHEN I GET HOME LATER THIS WEEK,
I WILL SOMEONE OFFICIALLY NAMED
JAKE REALLY AALSTON FOR THE FIRS
ONE THING I KNOW FOR CERTAIN, IT
WILL BE LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT."
YOUVE GOT TO GO AND FIND JOHNS
COLUMN AND READ IT FROM
BEGINNING TO END BECAUSE WHAT I
READ YOU WAS THE END.
IF YOU DONT CRY, YOU DONT HAVE
A HEART.
JOHN, WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF WHAT
IS GOING ON IN THIS COUNTRY
AGAINST TRANS YOUTH?
>> WELL, FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU
FOR ALMOST MAKING MY CRY THIS
EARLY ON.
THIS WAS AN EMOTIONAL TIME.
IT REMINDS ME AND I WROTE A
TWEET ABOUT TRANS VISIBILITY
DAY.
SO MUCH OF WHAT HAS GONE ON
TOWARDS TRANSPEOPLE I DONT
THINK -- YOU MENTIONED HATE.
ITS IGNORANCE WHICH, OF COURSE,
OFTEN TURNS INTO FEAR.
YOU HEARD THE GOVERNOR THERE SAY
THAT MAKES SENSE TO ME.
IT MAKES SENSE TO HIM
VISCERALLY.
I DOUBT HES DONE ANY RESEARCH
INTO THE SUBJECT.
THIS WHOLE ISSUE OF, QUOTE, SAVE
WOMEN SPORTS.
IS THE SAME MOTIVATION THAT
OCCURRED WHEN THEY TRIED TO PASS
ALL THE TRANSGENDER BATHROOM
BILLS, JOHN.
IT IMPLIED THERES A WAVE OF
TRANSGENDER PEOPLE GOING INTO
BATHROOMS TO STALK, HARASS, AND
COMMIT VIOLENCE AS IF THERE IS
SPEEZEDLY SOME WAVE OF
TRANSGENDER KIDS NOW WANTING TO
PLAY YOUTH SPORTS IN AND
DOMINATE BECAUSE OF THEIR
BIOLOGICAL BIRTH.
THIS IS NONSENSE.
ITS INTENDED TO DIVIDE.
UNFORTUNATELY, EVEN IF ITS BORN
OF IGNORANCE, NOT HATE, IT IS
GOING TO MAKE THINGS WORSE FOR
TRANS FOLKS.
ITS GOING TO BE DIVISIVE AND
JEN RAID -- AGAIN RAID AND
PROBABLY VIOLENCE.
>> THANK YOU FOR THAT.
I THINK HATE WAS TOO STRONG A
WORD.
IGNORANCE IS THE RIGHT WORD.
ARLI, THE GOVERNOR OF SOUTH
DAKOTA SHE -- WELL, TALK ABOUT
WHAT SHES DOING IN SOUTH
DAKOTA.
IM TRYING TO WRAP MY HEAD
AROUND WHAT SHES DOING.
>> ITS A A GREAT QUESTION.
MAKING A MESS IS THE ANSWER.
THE GOVERNOR DID VETO THE
ANTI-TRANSGENDER SPORTS BILL
THAT PASSED IN THE SOUTH DAKOTA
LEGISLATURE ON TECHNICALITIES.
ALSO FROM PRESSURE.
FROM BIG BUSINESSES, THE NCAA
SAYING THIS KIND OF LAW WILL
PREVENT US FROM DOING BUSINESS
IN YOUR STATE.
IT WILL PREVENT US FROM HOLDING
CHAMPIONSHIPS IN YOUR STATE.
THIS IS DISCRIMINATION.
BUT THEN SHE WENT ON TO PASS
EXECUTIVE ORDERS BANNING
TRANS STUDENTS FROM
PARTICIPATING IN SPORTS.
SHES MANAGED TO PISS OFF
EVERYBODY AND STILL PREVENT
INCLUSION OF OUR TRANS YOUTH.
WHAT A TERRIBLE MOVE ON ALL
PARTS.
>> UH-HUH.
AND, YOU KNOW, JUST TO PUT A
FINER POINT ON IT, YOU KNOW,
PUBLIC POLLING SHOWS THERES A
QUESTION SHOULD TRANS YOUTH BE
ALLOWED TO PLAY WHICHEVER SPORT
OR TEAM THEY FEEL COMFORTABLE?
73% OF THOSE POLLED SAID THEY
AGREE.
JOHN, FINAL QUESTION TO YOU.
I WANT YOU TO PUT ON YOUR
POLITICAL ANALYST HAT.
YOURE ONE OF THE BEST IN THE
BUSINESS.
REMEMBER IT WAS AROUND 2004 WHEN
YOU HAD THE ANTI-GAY MARRIAGE
THINGS THAT WERE HAPPENING
AROUND THE COUNTRY OR SO OF BY
THE BASE.
WHAT IMPACT WILL
ANTI-TRANSLEGISLATION HAVE
POLITICALLY THIS GO AROUND?
>> WELL, I THINK THATS EXACTLY
THE RIGHT ANALOGY, JONATHAN.
TO THE GAY RIGHTS MOVEMENT AND
WHAT HAPPENED.
REMEMBER YOU EVEN HAD PEOPLE
LIKE BILL CLINTON AND OTHERS
BEING AGAINST SAME-SEX MARRIAGE
UNTIL THE POPULAR WILL BECAME
TOO GREAT.
IT WAS THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT
OF THAT KIND.
THE SAME IS GOING TO HAPPEN WITH
THE TRANSMOVEMENT.
AT LEAST THAT IS MY HOPE,
JONATHAN.
THIS IS AN ATTEMPT OF OTHERING
TO TRY TO MAKE TRANSPEOPLE NOT
REAL PEOPLE AS WAS DONE, AS YOU
KNOW, WITH BLACKS AND WITH GAYS
PREVIOUS.
THEYRE NOT ENTITLED TO THE SAME
RIGHTS.
I DONT BELIEVE THAT IS GOING TO
GO ANYWHERE.
SURE, ITS GOING TO HELP SOME
REPUBLICANS BEGIN UP THE BASE,
WHICH IS WHAT IS THE POINT HERE.
BUT ULTIMATELY I STILL BELIEVE
IN NOT JUST BECAUSE I HAVE A
TRANS SON.
ALL THOUGH IT MAKES MORE
PERSONAL, I BELIEVE THAT GOOD IS
GOING TO TRY TRIUMPH HERE AND IT
WILL BECOME WIDE SPREAD IN THIS
COUNTRY.
ACCEPTANCE OF TRANS PEOPLE.
IF I CAN CLOSE BY SAYING,
LISTEN, ITS WHAT I SAID IN THE