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NBC News
4 days ago
- General
- NBC News
Nebraska is the latest state to ban transgender students from girls' sports
LINCOLN, Neb. — Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen signed into law Wednesday a measure banning transgender students from girls' sports, making the state the latest to keep transgender athletes from competing on women's and girls' teams. Pillen signed the law flanked by dozens of lawmakers, women athletes and other advocates — including former collegiate swimmer Riley Gaines, who has made a name for herself as a vocal advocate of banning transgender athletes from women's sports. The measure passed by the Nebraska Legislature last week broke a filibuster by a single vote cast along party lines. It was pared down from its initial form, which also sought to bar transgender students from using bathrooms and locker rooms corresponding with their gender identity. Sponsors agreed to drop the bathroom and locker room ban when one Republican — Omaha Sen. Merv Riepe — declared he would vote against it otherwise. The measure was first introduced in 2023 by then-freshman Sen. Kathleen Kauth, but failed to advance as lawmakers angrily argued over Kauth's other bill that sought to bar gender-affirming care for transgender minors under the age of 19. An amended version that banned gender-affirming surgery — but not all gender-affirming care — for minors later passed and was enacted that year. On Wednesday, Kauth promised to revive her bathroom and locker room ban next year, reiterating her rejection that people can determine their own gender. "Men are men and women are women," she said, and urged voters in Riepe's district to pressure him to support it. Republicans behind the sports ban say it protects women and girls and their ability to fairly compete in sports. Opponents say with so few transgender students seeking to participate in sports, the measure is a solution in search of a problem. Fewer than 10 transgender students have participated in middle school and high school sports in the state over the past decade, according to the Nebraska School Activities Association. At least 24 other states have adopted similar bans. President Donald Trump also signed an executive order this year intended to dictate which sports competitions transgender athletes can enter and has battled in court with Maine over that state's allowing transgender athletes in girls' and women's sports. The American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska denounced the measure. ACLU Nebraska Executive Director Mindy Rush Chipman said the ban "slams the door shut" for some transgender students to fully participate in their school communities.
4 days ago
- General
Nebraska is the latest state to ban transgender students from girls' sports
LINCOLN, Neb. -- Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen signed into law Wednesday a measure banning transgender students from girls' sports, making the state the latest to keep transgender athletes from competing on women's and girls' teams. Pillen signed the law flanked by dozens of lawmakers, women athletes and other advocates — including former collegiate swimmer Riley Gaines, who has made a name for herself as a vocal advocate of banning transgender athletes from women's sports. The measure passed by the Nebraska Legislature last week broke a filibuster by a single vote cast along party lines. It was pared down from its initial form, which also sought to bar transgender students from using bathrooms and locker rooms corresponding with their gender identity. Sponsors agreed to drop the bathroom and locker room ban when one Republican — Omaha Sen. Merv Riepe — declared he would vote against it otherwise. The measure was first introduced in 2023 by then-freshman Sen. Kathleen Kauth, but failed to advance as lawmakers angrily argued over Kauth's other bill that sought to bar gender-affirming care for transgender minors under the age of 19. An amended version that banned gender-affirming surgery — but not all gender-affirming care — for minors later passed and was enacted that year. On Wednesday, Kauth promised to revive her bathroom and locker room ban next year, reiterating her rejection that people can determine their own gender. 'Men are men and women are women,' she said, and urged voters in Riepe's district to pressure him to support it. Republicans behind the sports ban say it protects women and girls and their ability to fairly compete in sports. Opponents say with so few transgender students seeking to participate in sports, the measure is a solution in search of a problem. Fewer than 10 transgender students have participated in middle school and high school sports in the state over the past decade, according to the Nebraska School Activities Association. At least 24 other states have adopted similar bans. President Donald Trump also signed an executive order this year intended to dictate which sports competitions transgender athletes can enter and has battled in court with Maine over that state's allowing transgender athletes in girls' and women's sports. The American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska denounced the measure. ACLU Nebraska Executive Director Mindy Rush Chipman said the ban 'slams the door shut' for some transgender students to fully participate in their school communities. 'This ban will only create problems, not solve any,' Rush Chipman said, adding that 'the constant targeting of LGBTQ+ Nebraskans must stop.'
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
A proposed school book database law moves forward in Nebraska statehouse
A Nebraska legislative proposal would require creating a public online or hard-copy catalog of all books in the district's libraries, categorized by school building. (Stock photo by) LINCOLN — A bill requiring all public school districts to adopt a policy so parents can see what materials are in school libraries advanced with a vote Tuesday after a roughly 90-minute debate. State Sen. Dave Murman of Glenvil, who filed Legislative Bill 390, said during its hearing that the bill is an important next step after the Legislature updated parental access to curriculum content and training last year. The proposed law would require creating a public online or hard-copy catalog of all books in the district's libraries, categorized by school building. Under the bill, parents also could opt in for automatic email notification or another form of electronic notification when their student checks out a book. The book title, author and due date to return the book would be included in the notice. 'This is important so parents can be fully informed and make knowledgeable and family-specific decisions on the content their children are reading,' Murman said on the floor Tuesday. Murman said different families have different values and should have oversight over what their children read. The Republican is one of three lawmakers who proposed bills that could infuse more religion into public schools and test the legal limits of the separation of church and state. State Sen. Megan Hunt of Omaha called the bill a 'watered down book ban' and said it doesn't solve any actual issue. Hunt left the Nebraska Democratic Party in 2023 and is currently registered as a nonpartisan but typically votes with the Democrats in the Legislature. 'Instead of focusing on teacher shortages, on cuts to funding, on whatever nonsense is happening at the federal level that is freaking teachers out right now in Nebraska,' Hunt said. 'Schools will now have to waste resources on redundant bureaucracy.' State Sen. Danielle Conrad of Lincoln defended the bill, though she agreed it might be unnecessary. Conrad is a registered Democrat and a former executive director of ACLU Nebraska. 'It is not a book ban. It is not the weaponization of the criminal law against libraries,' Conrad said. 'It restates and reaffirms parental rights that already exist.' Hunt was the only vote against moving Murman's bill out of the Education Committee. Last year, the Nebraska State Board of Education rejected a push to define and ban sexually explicit books and materials from school libraries. Much of the floor debate alluded to that failed book ban. Book bans have drastically increased in recent years from school boards and local and state governments nationally. Six states have enacted some type of book ban laws. LB 390 moved forward with a 25-2 vote. Hunt said giving 'conservative Republicans what they want' won't make them willing to work with more liberal lawmakers. 'I got a 'fell for it again award' for you,' Hunt said. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Nebraska AG joins fray over birthright citizenship, draws criticism from some
Attorney General Mike Hilgers speaks during a news conference in Lincoln. May 13, 2024. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner) LINCOLN — Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers' entry into the growing conflict over President Donald Trump's directive to end birthright citizenship has sparked criticism from statewide civil rights and immigrant advocate groups. Hilgers and Republican counterparts in 17 other states signed onto a so-called friend of the court brief filed Monday in support of Trump's executive order. Marty Ramirez, co-chair of Las Voces Nebraska, an advocacy group representing Latinos and immigrants, said Hilgers is 'riding a tidal wave' of politicians following nonsensical acts to avoid upsetting Trump. 'He has to join or Nebraska pays a consequence,' Ramirez said. 'It's a dangerous movement.' Issued on the first day of his new presidency, Trump's 'Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship' order instructs federal officials not to issue documents recognizing the U.S. citizenship of children born after Feb. 19 to parents who were in the country without proper authorization or in the states lawfully but temporarily. According to Hilgers, the nation's immigration system is broken in part 'because of the idea that the child of any person who is here illegally, under nearly any set of circumstances, receives the privilege of United States citizenship so long as they are born here.' He echoed Trump in calling that a mistake. Said Hilgers: 'We stand with Iowa and our sister states in defending the executive order, and urging the Court to restore the original meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment.' Contrary to the attorney general's claims, Nebraskans know that immigrants make our state and our nation stronger. – Rose Godinez, legal director, ACLU Nebraska Hilgers and the GOP group, led by Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, filed their amicus brief in the wake of a flurry of lawsuits challenging the Trump order by groups including the American Civil Liberties Union, immigrant rights organizations and Democrat-led states. In their brief, the Republican attorneys general argue that 'allowing virtually anyone born on American soil to claim American citizenship creates incentives for illegal immigration and exacerbates states' costs.' They argue, like the Trump administration, that the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution did not intend to grant citizenship to every child born on U.S. soil. The Hilgers group argued that immigration policies during the Biden administration 'transformed every state into a border state by flooding them with illegal aliens, including criminals convicted of crimes in their home country, violent international gang members, and suspected ISIS terrorists.' ACLU Nebraska fired back, calling Hilgers' action a 'waste of state resources and deeply harmful.' Judge issues nationwide injunction blocking Trump executive order on birthright citizenship 'He knows that this order violates the clear text of the U.S. Constitution and more than a century of Supreme Court precedent,' said Rose Godinez, legal director of ACLU Nebraska. Birthright citizenship is a core piece of the Constitution, she said, adding that the Nebraska chapter was proud of colleagues and clients working to permanently overturn the 'cruel and unlawful order.' 'Contrary to the attorney general's claims, Nebraskans know that immigrants make our state and our nation stronger,' Godinez. On Wednesday, a federal judge in Maryland blocked President Trump's executive order. The nationwide preliminary injunction by U.S District Judge Deborah Boardman expanded a ruling two weeks ago by another federal court in Seattle that blocked the president's order for 14 days, saying it was 'blatantly unconstitutional.' Boardman's preliminary injunction puts the executive order on hold until the merits of the case are resolved, barring a successful Trump administration appeal. More hearings are set to come soon in other birthright citizenship cases. In addition to Iowa and Nebraska, other state attorneys general endorsing the friend-of-the-court brief were: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
