THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

On March 22, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed two bills into law that affect transgender minors in the state, NBC News reported.

Senate File 538 prevents doctors from administering gender-affirming care to those under 18. The other, Senate File 482, actually stops trans students from entering school bathrooms or changing rooms that align with their gender identities. (Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders also signed a law on March 21 banning transgender people at public schools from using the restroom that matches their gender identity, following her own anti-trans healthcare measure.)

In addition, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp also signed into law a measure that bans most gender-affirming surgeries and hormone replacement therapies for transgender people under 18, a PBS Newshour item noted.

The ACLU has noted that more than 400 anti-LGBTQ+ proposals have been filed in state legislatures across the country this year.

"This is not the first time that a government has abused its power at the expense of a small group of people," Mark Stringer, executive director of the ACLU of Iowa, said in a statement. "But in this case the target is children. That is shameful and cruel."