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Nebraska Lawmaker Filibusters Anti-Trans Bill for Seventh Straight Week

“If this legislature collectively decides that legislating hate against children is our priority, then I am going to make it painful—painful for everyone.”

Democratic state Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh just entered her seventh week of filibustering a bill that would limit the rights of trans youth in her state of Nebraska. “If this legislature collectively decides that legislating hate against children is our priority, then I am going to make it painful—painful for everyone,” Cavanaugh told NPR. The state senator has been spending up to 12 hours a day since the end of February filibustering LB574, a bill that would bar physicians from providing gender-affirming care for Nebraskans under the age of 19. In a process that she called “mentally and emotionally tiring,” the subject matter of Cavanaugh’s filibuster ranges from legislative debates to random thoughts on food and life. “[Sunday], I spent a lot of time talking about Easter Sunday and my love of au gratin potatoes,” she said. Nebraska’s LB574 is one of many bills around the country focused on trans children, specifically. Cavanaugh says she doesn’t understand this recent fixation from policymakers. “I don't know why, as a nation, as policymakers, there is this newfound focus on trans children,” she said. “I would like to see all of our policymakers stepping out of the bathroom, stepping out of the doctor's room and getting back to policy.”