A bill to ban the use of puberty blockers for people under 18 was defeated in the South Australian Parliament on Wednesday.
Despite trans folk making up an estimated 1% of the Australian population, it is just one of more than three motions, questions and bills put forward in SA’s Upper House on Wednesday, all aimed at targeting the trans community.
One Nation MP Cory Bernardi has put forward a bill to ban puberty blockers and gender-affirming hormones for transgender people under 18, while Independent Sarah Game has moved for an inquiry into young people seeking assistance for gender dysphoria.
South Australian One Nation MP Rebecca Hewett also raised “concerns” over trans women competing in women’s sports, while outside the South Australian Parliament, a rally organised by the Australian Christian Lobby turned out in support of both proposals.
Related Content:
- Cory Bernardi has been suspended from Facebook after targeting teen protesters
- Hundreds of trans youth to join class action against Qld Government
- Fact-checking Pauline Hanson’s National Press Club speech
The bill that was defeated
The bill put forward by Bernardi would prohibit the use of puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and other prescribed medications to treat gender dysphoria in people under the age of 18.
Under the proposed legislation, it would be an offence for a registered health practitioner to prescribe or administer a prescribed drug to a person under 18, or for their use, for the purpose of treating gender dysphoria.
The bill was defeated by Labor and The Greens, after a vote on Wednesday. The result: 11 votes to 8 in the Legislative council.
You may recognise Cory Bernardi, who was suspended from Facebook after posting videos from a protest outside South Australia’s Parliament House, where hundreds of people, many of them school students, had gathered as part of nationwide demonstrations against One Nation.
The Member of Parliament filmed himself roaming through the protest, repeatedly using an anti-trans slur and describing the demonstrators as “a bunch of incels, an “assortment of weirdos” and took particular issue with the presence of trans teenagers at the rally.
Bernardi also recently doubled down on a speech he made in 2012 in which he claimed that beastiality would be the “next step” if gay marriage was legalised, stating that Australia has undergone a “degenerative cultural decline” due to the “influence” of the “filthy left” since Australians voted in favour of marriage equality.
One afternoon, more than three pieces of parliamentary business targeting trans community
Bernardi’s bill was just one of several times trans people came up in South Australian Parliament this afternoon. Since 2.15 pm (SA time) today, the trans community has been an ongoing topic of conversation for conservatives.
These include Independent (previously One Nation) MP Sarah Game, who moved that a Select Committee be established to inquire into and report on, young people seeking assistance for gender dysphoria in South Australia.
She said the inquiry would focus on the services available to children and young people seeking gender diverse healthcare, the role, rights and obligations of parents of gender-diverse children, and public funding in relation to gender-affirming healthcare.
Further, Game stated she hoped to investigate the links between “mental health conditions, neurodevelopmental conditions, [and] trauma histories” among young people seeking trans healthcare, the use of hormones, and the experiences of individuals who discontinue, reverse or seek detransition.
On top of Game’s motion and Bernardi’s bill, South Australian One Nation MP Rebecca Hewett used parliamentary question time to raise “concerns” about trans women competing in sport.
During her speech, she voiced accusations by former AFL player and safety agent Peter Jess that allowing trans women to compete in women’s sports would increase risk of concussions.
All this, combined with a rally in support of both Bernardi’s anti-trans bill taking place outside South Australian Parliament today, has seen trans people become the focus of an extraordinary amount of political attention in a single afternoon.
Advocates condemn the latest attack on trans rights
LGBTQIA+ advocacy groups and community members alike have condemned Cory Bernardi’s proposed bill, raising concerns that it reflects a broader escalation in anti-trans rhetoric in South Australia.
Greens MLC Robert Simms said he was “horrified” to see Bernardi film school students protesting against One Nation on the steps of Parliament, expecially Bernardi’s use of an anti-trans slur and descriptions of the students as “losers and incels”
“Last week, I was horrified to see the honourable member take footage of schoolchildren rallying on the steps of this parliament, referring to them as losers and incels. He even referred to one young person as ‘a tr*nnie’. This is the content being posted about children by a member of this parliament,” Simms said.
Simms also described the incident as part of a wider escalation in anti-trans rhetoric, saying that while One Nation had been a particular driver of this rhetoric, other political parties had also “got in on the act”.
SA Rainbow Advocacy Alliance (SAARA) CEO Varo Lee similarly criticised the proposed restrictions, arguing that they reinforce the misconception that young people can “just walk into a doctor’s office and transition instantly”.
“That’s certainly not the case at all,” Lee told InDaily.
Lee also criticised the proposal to use criminal law against health practitioners providing gender-affirming care.
“To use the criminal law to threaten health practitioners for providing what most people describe as lifesaving, life-changing care that is evidence-based and backed by Australian medical colleges is pretty appalling,” Lee said.
South Australia is part of a growing anti-trans movement
The vilification of trans people in South Australia today reflects a national and international trend in which a relatively small population has become the focus of a disproportionate amount of political attention.
Despite trans people making up an estimated 1% of Australia’s population, issues relating to trans healthcare, sport, education and participation in public life have increasingly become the subject of political efforts to restrict, ban, censor and limit the rights of trans people.
South Australia is not an exception, as many advocates have warned. Bernardi himself acknowledged that his bill was “informed by international developments that have occurred over recent years”, including in the United Kingdom.
Recent bans on puberty blockers and hormones for trans individuals under 18 in Queensland and the Northern Territory have also raised concerns amongst LGBTQ+ advocacy groups, including the Northern Territory AIDS and Hepatitis Council, who stated that the change represents a “significant backtrack” driven by ideology rather than established medical expertise.
If you need support, help is available from QLife at 1800 184 527 or online at QLife.org.au, Lifeline on 13 11 14, or beyondblue on 1300 22 4636.
For the latest LGBTQIA+ Sister Girl and Brother Boy news, entertainment, and community stories in Australia, visit qnews.com.au. Find us on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
What was the vote, tho? How many were for it?
Hey Crissa!
The bill was defeated by Labor and The Greens. It was a One Nation bill supported by Family First and the Liberals. The result: 11 votes to 8 in the Legislative council.