Utah Gov. Spencer Cox Poised to Veto Anti-Trans Sports House Bill 11

SALT LAKE CITY, UT — (03-07-22) — Last Saturday, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox pledged to veto House Bill 11, the state’s anti-transgender legislation that would ban transgender youth from participating in school sports. House Bill 11 was approved in the late night hour and sent to the governor’s desk for signature.

With the governor’s pledge to veto House Bill 11, Utah will become the first state in 2022 to reject an anti-trans sports bill approved by the GOP conservative majority legislature.

Gov. Cox’s pledge to veto the bill — which was hastily pushed through the Senate on the last night of Utah’s legislative session — was met with resounding praise and appreciation for standing up on behalf of transgender student athletes who the governor addressed by saying, “I just want them to know that it’s gonna be okay.”

Cathryn Oakley, Human Rights Campaign State Legislative Director and Senior Counsel released the following statement:

“As the first governor this year pledging to veto anti-trans legislation sent to his desk for signature, Gov. Cox deserves praise for standing up to those who continue to target and attack transgender youth. Transgender kids are kids, and they do not deserve to be the targets of dehumanizing attacks that invalidate their identity. Like all children, they deserve the opportunity to play sports with their friends and learn important life skills like sportsmanship, teamwork, and healthy competition through athletic participation. Utahns deserve better than legislators who are seeking to bully transgender youth with politically motivated bills for the sake of discrimination itself. Gov. Cox has shown he sees the humanity of the transgender youth impacted by this legislation — something Governors in states like South Dakota and Iowa have not. The Human Rights Campaign appreciates his promise to veto.

Transgender youth, like all youth, gain benefits from participating in school athletics: leadership opportunities, better physical and mental health outcomes, self-discipline, self-confidence, teamwork, and, of course, fun – and they shouldn’t be prevented from participating in school athletics because of who they are.

Even when anti-transgender legislation is defeated as this one, politicians are culpable for the harm they continue to cause LGBTQ+ American’s wellbeing simply by being subjected to constant legislative attacks on their dignity and humanity.

As we saw just last week, there are real consequences to the discrimination perpetrated upon LGBTQ+ people, and particularly transgender youth.”

JRL CHARTS LGBT Politics News Division commends Gov Spencer Cox to stand up to political pressure with his veto on anti-Trans Sports Ban legislation.

Article by: Paul Goldberg, Staff Writer

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