Take care of yourself and one another. And let's practice that care earnestly and urgently.
12.03.2026 03:23
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Take care of yourself and one another. And let's practice that care earnestly and urgently.
No one is coming to save us but us. And while legislative work can feel all consuming and deeply despairing in the moment, it's such a small part of the monumental and incredible task of building the world we want to live in together.
Stepping away from legislative asks (and watching) when we need to, and asking less directly impacted folks to step in and make their allyship actionable.
Feeding each other. Moving our bodies. Figuring out what we need to practice hope and fight despair, then using our care practices to ask for help in making that a reality.
Hellmo (a meme-d version of Elmo with fire behind him) and text "How it feels being trans during the Oklahoma Legislative session".
Revisiting our solidarity sessions content, and grounding ourselves in what we can do, closest to home, to take a step towards the future we're trying to build. Making bad memes, because sometimes we have to laugh through it.
Reading stories that remind us we're not alone, and that while this all is overwhelming, we have so many roadmaps to these fights from our transcestors. Particularly as we approach #TransRightsReadathon, you can find some reading recs on our other social platforms. www.instagram.com/p/DVtd51DFFa...
Leaning into community, sharing physical space with other queer and trans folks, even when that's sharing space at the Capitol on days we have to be here. Making art. Just generally but especially as part of our Love Letters to Trans Oklahomans project. docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
Acknowledging this reality, and this sense of what can I even do as a very valid feeling. Here's some of what helps for our team in these moments: bearing witness and sharing information, even when it's bad.
Over on our Instagram, someone asked about combatting the sense of overwhelm and despair as the attacks keep coming, and it feels right to close our feed here with some of what we shared.
Staying informed about the Oklahoma Legislature, especially as a trans person, can make hope feel particularly impossible to practice.
As we come up on a full 12 hours of legislative watching, we know it has been a difficult day to say the least.
HB 3242 by Rep Hasenbeck passes off the House floor by a vote of 74-17. It joins the rest of the anti-trans legislation heard today in moving to the Senate. We'll update committee assignments as they're made in our legislative tracker.
docs.google.com/spreadsheets...
She says societies have always respected and kept sex-based separation of spaces. Which is just...not true.
And now, Hasenbeck begins her closing attack on trans people with a Ruth Bader Ginsburg quote. She's reading a pre-written speech that's sure... something.
She says that this bill puts trans people at risk. And that our lives are precious.
Ranson says she has never been afraid of a trans person. That the situations in which she has felt fear is in the presence of straight (cis) men.
She points out that this is a comparatively small group of people in Oklahoma who are being picked out and picked on by the legislature.
Ranson says that kids all just want to belong. They don't want to have their presentation policed every day. They don't want the impact of rhetoric like that in this bill and the discussion surrounding it following them every day.
Ranson notes this bill also impacts domestic violence shelters that receive state funds. She asks how this impacts folks who have escaped situations without documents like birth certificates. Not to mention the trans folks, particularly trans women, who face disproportionately high rates of violence
Ranson in her debate reiterates that what the bill's alleged purpose is and the impact of the language are incredibly disparate.
Notes that having trans men forced to use women's spaces may create more discomfort than the author seems to believe exists in situations where trans folks just get to exist and use facilities based on our gender not based on state mandated identity definitions that don't align with reality.
She points out all of the ways this bill isn't actually about safety but instead is about targeting trans people.
McCane says she has confused folks about her gender based on her haircut. And that gender presentation could create increasingly dangerous scenarios because of this policy that causes more gender policing rooted in hateful rhetoric.
McCane says her line of questioning was rooted in the body's lack of understanding about transgender people, our experiences, and how we exist in the world.
With no more questions, we shift to debate. Only Reps Ranson and McCane debating against. Rep Hasenbeck debating for. Each given up to 10 minutes.
McCane asks about consequences for violating this bill as written in the bill. Hasenbeck says that would be up to individual institutions.
and Hasenbeck goes to her canned answer about how this bill is about protecting women (so long as they present as femme).
Deck asks on behalf of his constituents who have expressed concerns because they have kids whose gender presentation might cause folks to call their gender into question about their safety.
Ranson asks if there are protections for trans folks. Hasenbeck says no. Then that she doesn't understand. And then answers it protects people based on "biological sex" so yes (so actually no).
An exchange with Deck about how Hasenbeck was offended by an amendment he offered to protect minors from gender inspection.