Advocates and members of the LGBT community from around the state took part in the South Dakota People’s March on Pierre today (Mon.) to remind lawmakers they “Represent all of us.”
One bill the group took issue with was HB1057, which would prevent South Dakota physicians from giving gender confirmation procedures to children under 16. The Senate Health and Human Services Committee voted 5-2 today to send HB1057 to the 41st legislative day, killing the proposal.
People’s march organizer Carl Petersen from Eagle Butte says it’s one of a handful of discriminatory bills that have been introduced this session.
Petersen says while the bills may appear to target small segments of the state’s residents, they really target everyone.
Seymour Otterman was one of a group from Sioux Falls who came to Pierre to encourage lawmakers to protect LGBT rights.
Petersen encourages people to contact your legislators about any proposed legislation or topic of importance to you.
Companies and organizations like Sanford Health, the South Dakota Chapter of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the South Dakota Pharmacists Association, the ACLU of South Dakota, the South Dakota Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the South Dakota State Medical Association, the South Dakota Retailers Association, the Sioux Falls Area Chamber of Commerce, LEAD South Dakota and the Human Rights Campaign all opposed HB1057.
