LGBTQ+ leaders say Michigan has ‘a lot at stake’ in 2024 election • Michigan Advance

Politicians say politics is important for voters

Five Democratic members of the state House of Representatives spoke about how positively their constituents responded to the progressive legislation lawmakers passed over the past 18 months.

Pohutsky, a member of the LGBTQ+ Caucus in the House of Representatives, provided an overview of bills passed by the legislature to protect Michigan’s LGBTQ+ population.

Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed law Expanding Michigan’s anti-discrimination law LGBTQ+ people in the last year and banned conversion therapy for minors. In addition Funding for LGBTQ+ health centers appeared for the first time in the state budget for the 2024 fiscal year.

The Senate also passed a Ban on panic defense for gays and transsexuals Thursday. The defense excuses crimes such as assault on an LGBTQ+ person because it allows the perpetrator to shift the blame to their identity. The bill is sent back to the House of Representatives.

Pohutsky also mentioned laws that could still be passed, including easier to change names legally Michigan, The executive director of the Grand Rapids Trans Foundation said the measure would help break down barriers for transgender people across the state.

“I don’t think I’m exaggerating when I say that this bill will change and save the lives of many people in our community,” Kittok said.

Pohutsky said the passage of the bills was due in part to having so many openly LGBTQ+ lawmakers in the legislature.

“We also elected the largest LGBTQ caucus in the history of the state,” Pohutsky said. “And that was amazing and fundamentally changed the way we can talk about these issues.”

State Rep. John Fitzgerald (D-Wyoming) attributed his campaign success in part to people showing more empathy for the LGBTQ+ community today. He said his constituents want more progressive policies, such as gun reform, and have responded positively to the Democratic majority. This legislative productivity could help Democrats retain their majority in the next legislative session, Fitzgerald said.

“I think that’s what people really connected to our mission in 2022: to make our community stronger, better, more tolerant and more supportive of people on their personal journeys,” Fitzgerald said.

Issues like reproductive rights and LGBTQ+ rights motivated voters to go to the polls and elect people who would support them, said state Rep. Phil Skaggs (D-East Grand Rapids). He said the campaign to support the LGBTQ+ community helped elect the Democratic majority that was able to pass laws to protect them.

The passage of additional legislation protecting the LGBTQ+ community in Michigan has also allowed people to speak openly about their experiences with issues such as conversion therapy, said state Reps. Rachel Hood (D-Grand Rapids) and Kristian Grant (D-Grand Rapids).

But you have to be privileged to even know about the policy and be able to vote with ease, says Jazz McKinney, executive director of the Grand Rapids Pride Center. They say many people who use the center as a source of information don’t know about the legislation because they’re struggling with more existential issues, like unaffordable housing and mental health problems.

“I think it’s difficult because especially a lot of the community members that I serve are so busy trying to survive,” McKinney said. “I don’t know if any community member that I saw today would have known that this (banning gay panic defenses) passed in the Senate yesterday.”

McKinney emphasized the importance of intersectionality and passing legislation that would directly help all members of the LGBTQ+ community.

“It’s kind of like, ‘yes, and,'” McKinney said. “Yes, we need those high-level things, but we also need to think about the intersectionality aspect and how those things impact the way we’re literally trying to just survive.”