Montana GOP Bars Trans Lawmaker From House Floor Over Protest – By Julia Conley (Common Dreams) / April 26, 2023
“If you use decorum to silence people who hold you accountable, then all you are doing is using decorum as a tool for oppression,” said Rep. Zooey Zephyr.
Montana’s first transgender lawmaker, state Rep. Zooey Zephyr, was barred from entering the House floor on Wednesday afternoon as the Republican majority voted in favor of formally disciplining her over remarks she made last week about a ban on gender-affirming healthcare.
Under the motion, Zephyr (D-100) will be permitted only to cast votes remotely for the duration of the legislative session, which ends May 6.
The House voted 68-32 along party lines to bar Zephyr from the House floor just over a week after she told Republicans that they would have “blood on their hands” if they supported a ban on gender-affirming care for youths.
GOP leaders claimed the motion to formally punish Zephyr was in response to a protest by her supporters in the House gallery on Monday, which they accused her of encouraging. During the protest, Zephyr stood on the House floor and held up a nonfunctioning microphone as the protesters, seven of whom were arrested, were led out of the gallery.
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