Marjorie Taylor Greene posts an anti-transgender sign across the hall from a lawmaker with a transgender child
WASHINGTON — After a contentious debate on the Equality Act, which might extend civil rights protections to the LGBTQ community, Rep. Marie Newman, D-Ill., on Wednesday raised a transgender pride flag outside her office — which happens to take a seat directly across from the office of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., one among the bill’s most vocal opponents.
“Our neighbor, @RepMTG, tried to dam the Equality Act because she believes prohibiting discrimination against trans Americans is ‘disgusting, immoral, and evil,'” Newman, who features a transgender daughter, wrote on Twitter with a video of her hanging the flag. “Thought we’d put up our Transgender flag so she will check out it whenever she opens her door.”
Marjorie Taylor Greene quickly responded together with her own video mocking Newman’s earlier tweet as she hung up a billboard that said, “There are TWO genders: Male & Female. Trust the science.”
Greene is facing sharp criticism after she posted an anti-transgender sign outside of her office, directly across the hall from another lawmaker who features a transgender child.
The antagonizing move by Greene comes because the home is expected to pass the Equality Act, a bill that might ban discrimination against LGTBQ Americans, later Thursday, after the Georgia Republican's plan to block the act failed on Wednesday. It also follows a string of incendiary statements and actions by the freshman Georgia congresswoman, who was far away from her committee assignments earlier this month after violent past comments were unearthed.
Illinois Rep. Marie Newman, whose daughter is transgender, posted a video on Twitter of her hanging the pink and blue transgender pride flag outside her office Wednesday afternoon, captioning that Greene tried to dam the act "because she believes prohibiting discrimination against trans Americans is 'disgusting, immoral, and evil,'" adding, "though we'd put up our Transgender flag so she will check out it whenever she opens her door" with winking and transgender flag emojis.
That evening, Greene retweeted Newman's post and added a video of her hanging a symbol that reads "There are TWO genders: MALE & FEMALE ...Trust The Science!".
Newman’s fellow Illinois Democrat, Rep. Sean Casten, called Greene’s poster “sickening, pathetic, unimaginably cruel.”
“This hate is strictly why the #EqualityAct is important and what we must protect [Newman’s] daughter and every one our LGBTQ+ loved ones against,” he said during a tweet.
The Equality Act features a strong Democratic backing within the House and Senate, and a past iteration of the bill drew support from a little number of Republicans. But many Republicans — from moderates like Sen. Mitt Romney (Utah) to hard-liners like Greene — oppose the bill and argue it might threaten religious liberties.
Some, like Greene, have also claimed that the bill will roll back protections for ladies by allowing transgender people to participate in sports and increasing discrimination protections supported identity, instead of biological sex. Critics have panned those arguments as transphobic, with roots during a fringe movement that has made some radical feminists and conservatives unlikely allies on the difficulty.
Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., challenged Greene for citing science in her claim that only two genders exist.
“Your sign is wrong because it’s not what the science says,” Lieu tweeted Wednesday evening, quoting a Scientific American column that concludes: “The science is obvious and conclusive: sex isn't binary, transgender people are real.”
The criticism of Greene also came from beyond the confines of the Capitol. Many activists and political commentators denounced her actions, including the conservative CNN contributor S.E. Cupp.
“Rep. Newman’s daughter is transgender,” Cupp said in response to Greene’s video. “Public servants of excellent faith argue policy. Ghouls who believe they’re only representing themselves, not actual people, get personal and nasty.”
Despite Republican efforts to combat the bill, the Democrat-controlled House will likely pass the Equality Act. Newman will definitely be among the lawmakers voting in favor of the bill.
“Without the Equality Act, this nation will never live up to its principles of freedom and equality,” Newman said on the House floor Wednesday afternoon. “The best time to pass this act was decades ago. The runner-up time is true now. I’m voting ‘Yes’ on the Equality Act for Evie Newman, my daughter and therefore the strongest, bravest person I do know .”
If the legislation succeeds within the House, it'll advance to the Senate, where it could pass, but could also be challenged with a filibuster if Democrats cannot convince 10 Republicans to hitch them. President Biden has already said he would sign the bill into law if it's passed.
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