With the end of the legislative session, Republicans in Colorado are giving an accounting of their performance to constituents at town hall events across the state. In the House, Republicans only hold 19 seats, compared to the 46 held by Democrats. In town halls in Douglas and El Paso Counties, Republican representatives expressed frustration at their inability to override Democratic priorities like abortion and gun control.
Republican legislators addressed attendees of the Colorado Parent Advocacy Network’s (CPAN) “Rally for Parent Rights” yesterday. The rally, which featured approximately 100 attendees, was in response to House Bill 23-1003, which would create a sixth through twelfth grade mental health assessment screening program administered by the state Department of Public Health & Environment. Republican legislators addressed vaccines, charter schools, LGBTQ issues, and what they saw as government overreach in regard to policies aimed at Colorado students.
As the Colorado Democrats’ “Safe Access to Protected Health Care” package of legislation moves to House for consideration, Republicans have taken to talk radio to share their views on the proposed bills that target the marketing practices of anti-abortion centers and their use of an unproven pill to reverse an abortion, expand legal protections for patients and providers seeking reproductive and gender-affirming health care, and expand insurance coverage for those seeking reproductive health care.
As state legislatures across the country are considering — and often passing — laws to limit access to gender-affirming health care and ban drag performances, the University of Colorado Boulder hosted the 17th annual TRANSforming Gender Conference this weekend. The free conference, which featured nearly 50 panels and workshops, raises awareness about issues and identities in the trans community, bringing together members of the LGBTQ community and allies to attend talks, trainings and forums on a wide variety of topics.
Less than a month into 2023, Republican politicians are kicking the new legislative session off with overwhelming bigotry. According to the ACLU, over 150 bills targeting the LGBTQ community, and transgender people in particular, have already been introduced in legislatures across the country. In Colorado, three GOP legislators added a new bill to the pile this week, this one meant to attack trans athletes in Colorado’s public schools.
Sunday marked the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which decriminalized abortion nationwide.
