News & Commentary

Lawmakers in Kansas have introduced seven bills in recent weeks focusing on abortion and transgender rights, such as SB 180, which received pushback from groups such as the ACLU of Kansas on the basis that it excludes transgender people from certain spaces.

Kansas lawmakers are moving forward with legislation that would define biological sex and ban transgender athletes from women sports. However, Aileen Berquist, Policy Director for the ACLU of Kansas, argued that the bill is not about women’s rights.

“My understanding is that they are jumping from state to state, pushing a very specific agenda,” Berquist said. “The people who are opponents of this bill are living, working, having children and fighting this hatred in our communities every day, and they deserve to have their voices heard.” 

Puberty blockers, mastectomies, surgeries that remove “any body part or tissue” and prescribing estrogen to males or testosterone to females to treat gender dysphoria could be essentially unavailable in Kansas to people under 18 due to a bill in the Statehouse would cost doctors their licenses.

The past two years have been the deadliest for transgender people in recent history, in large part due to the rapidly increasing number of legislative attacks against trans peoples’ rights and the resurgence of demeaning and harmful anti-trans rhetoric in our communities. Kansas is no exception.

Organization wants to eliminate fees for children and legalize medical marijuana

On Thursday May 12th, the ACLU of Kansas submitted opposition testimony to proposed changes to K.A.R. 28-17-20, an administrative policy which relates to the process for making changes to birth certificates.

Great news!After organizations from across the state came together to oppose SB 175, Kansas House Speaker Ray Merrick announced yesterday that he does not plan to debate the bill, a bill that would force universities to use public funding to support discriminatory student organizations.The ACLU of Kansas, Equality of Kansas, National Organization for Women, Americans United, Mainstream Coalition, as well as student voices and faith leaders from across Kansas proved that this discrimination is not acceptable for the state of Kansas.Thank you for your support on this issue! Your voice matters.

The ACLU of Kansas promises to push forward on Kansas marriage lawsuit after the U.S. Supreme Court takes cases.Doug Bonney, legal director for the ACLU of Kansas, said nothing would likely change while the nation’s highest court considers several marriage-related cases. The U.S. Supreme Court announced Friday it had decided to take cases related to state same-sex marriage bans. The court will likely issue a ruling this spring.“We are certainly going to continue to press forward to try to get final judgments in our case,” Bonney said.Read the entire article on the Topeka Capital-Journal from January 16, 2015.