Republican State Legislator Wants to Legalize Trans Discrimination in Georgia

ATLANTA – After a full year of Georgia Republicans supporting policies that gut healthcare for Georgians with preexisting conditions and strip women of their bodily autonomy, Republicans in Georgia are once again backing extreme legislation to legalize discrimination against LGBTQ Georgians – making it clear that next year’s legislative session will be just as reckless and dangerous as the last. 

Today, Republican State Representative Philip Singleton filed legislation that would legalize discrimination against transgender children, and threaten to punish school sports teams for being inclusive of LGBTQ students. 

This isn’t the first time Georgia Republicans have blatantly tried to legalize discrimination against the LGBTQ community – and it isn’t even the first time this week. U.S. Senate designee and Republican megadonor Kelly Loeffler pledged this week to support controversial legislation that legalizes discrimination against LGBTQ Georgians, despite previous attempts being opposed by Georgia’s business community and former Republican Governor Nathan Deal because of the devastating effect it would have on Georgia’s economy and job market.  

“Philip Singleton just made it clear what we can expect from Georgia Republicans next session: active discrimination as state policy, instead of protecting the rights of LGBTQ Georgians or ensuring that uninsured Georgians can afford their health care,” said Maggie Chambers, spokeswoman for the Democratic Party of Georgia. “Singleton’s bill is just the latest in a long history of Georgia Republicans doing anything possible to put their extreme agenda ahead of the needs of their constituents.”

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