First openly trans lawmaker in Kansas faces explicit transphobia from Republican colleague
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Republican Rep. Cheryl Helmer of Kansas publicly declared that she doesn’t want to share the women’s bathrooms at the Statehouse with a trans colleague. “Now, personally I do not appreciate the huge transgender female who is now in our restrooms in the Capitol,” Helmer wrote in an email to University of Kansas graduate student Brenan Riffel, who is trans-feminine and uses they/them pronouns, as reported by The Washington Post. “It is quite uncomforting,” the email continued. “I have asked the men if they would like a woman in their restroom and they freaked out.”
Democratic state Rep. Stephanie Byers, an openly trans Indigenous woman serving Kansas, said on Tuesday that transphobic comments are nothing new, but the shocking part is that someone actually came out and said it, which is just about as gracious as anyone in this situation can be.
Obviously, Helmer should be censured in some way, but it’s unclear if anything will actually happen. Especially because Helmer has only doubled down on her comments, and more than just expressing her personal opinion, she is also trying to push anti-trans hate into law. The latest example is HB 2210, the bill she co-sponsored, which aims to make it a felony for physicians in the state to provide gender-affirming care, including hormones, to trans people under 18.
RELATED: The Republican hysteria campaign about trans rights is working on voters
“You can’t lop a penis off and then expect, you know, a little boy to now live his life,” Helmer said on Monday according to the Associated Press, adding that the person would be in “regret” for the rest of their life. No one is lopping the genitals off of children, period. Adding to this incredibly misleading and incorrect portrayal of science is the fact that Helmer is a retired school counselor and nursing instructor.
Riffel, the student who received the initial response from Helmer, said in an interview with the Associated Press they weren’t surprised by Helmer’s feelings, given what it takes to sponsor anti-trans legislation. They said the rhetoric against LGBTQ+ folks has been the same for a long time, and at the end of the day, they just want to be themselves and live their life.
In the same email to Riffel, by the way, Helmer reportedly claimed that a doctor can “inject meds” and “dilute” but cannot “destroy” what “God has done in the perfection of the HUMAN BEING.” Helmer also claimed that as a former biology major, she understands the biological difference between “a man and a woman.” She also claimed to Riffel that trans women are stronger and larger than cisgender women and therefore it’s dangerous for cis and trans women to share bathrooms.
Again, this is all transphobia, not accurate science or medicine.
If you’re wondering why these two were emailing to begin with, it’s because Riffel was a responsible concerned adult and reached out to Helmer to try and reason with her about her support of the anti-trans health care bill.
“What have trans kids ever done to you?” Riffel asked in their email, according to The Washington Post. “Are they a threat to you? Should they be attacked for simply wanting to be who they want to be?” Hypothetically these questions would be a great way to engage with someone’s empathy and compassion, but Helmer used it as an opportunity to spew transphobia and hate.
And in case there is any confusion, Helmer confirmed in an interview with the Topeka Capital-Journal that she was referencing Myers in her email about the bathroom.