An Arizona federal judge ruled that Peoria's school board didn't violate Heather Rooks's free speech rights when they attempted to shut down her scripture readings. It left the question open on if she's violating the constitution.
Mesa Rep. Lorena Austin is trying (again) to get a license plate bill passed to aid students after it has met all the required legislative rules. Republicans appear to be blocking it.
How an anti-LGBTQ+ org teaches parents to overwhelm school admin
A private web meeting last week showed how a far-right religious organization is trying to teach families to challenge schools, causing a chilling a chilling effect.
In this week's newsletter: Arizona Women of Action; A queer northern AZ candidate is running against Wendy Rogers; Corporations bail on LGBTQ+ community; And a new In-Queer-sitive game for the week!
WOMEN OF ACTION: Last week, parents and community members gathered in a private web group to discuss something that wasn’t happening: Peoria Unified School District’s counselors were “transing” children.
There is no evidence of that, and nobody on the call provided proof of it. But the meeting—which was leaked to LOOKOUT after attempting to join but was denied entry—went on to double down on conspiracy theories that educators in the school district were using their positions of power to force kids into changing their gender.
How were they going to prove it? Teach people on the call to file public records requests.
On the call was Heather Rooks, who has consistently used her position on the Governing School Board in Peoria to make bogus claims about trans children, and is now being sued by a nonbinary teacher who was targeted by Rooks.
The group that organized the web meetup, Arizona Women of Action, is a far-right organization that advocates for state legislation targeting trans children, LGBTQ+ content, and is represented by America First Legal, founded by former Donald Trumps advisor Stephen Miller.
LOOKOUT'S TAKE: To be clear, there are multiple organizations in the state claiming that schools are pushing kids to transition. Nobody has provided evidence of this claim.
However, there has been actual evidence of increased LGBTQ+ hate crimes in the state—in part due to increased rhetoric around these false allegations. In the same school district where the web meetup took place, one teacher had their tires slashed and rocks thrown through their home window.
Online, we at LOOKOUT have fielded through dozens of comments claiming that we—a news outlet—are “grooming” kids.
Inflaming the public seems to be working. In a recent interview, one elected official on the campaign trail locally said that Democratic voters—though hyper aware of LGBTQ+ issues this election season—are not voting for it, specifically. However, across the aisle, Republican voters are consistently naming sex and identity issues in schools as a primary reason to get out and vote.
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🌵 LOCAL NEWS
VOICES: This week we wrapped up our series on how Arizona’s sex education programs affect students later in life. You can rad our five-part interview series here. LOOKOUT
LATINO PRIDE: This past weekend was Latino Pride in Phoenix, an annual festival before Tucson and Phoenix’s Pride festivals that celebrate the state’s growing LGBTQ+ Latinx community. Arizona Republic
UNSEATING ROGERS?: A Northern Arizona nonbinary candidate is hoping to unseat Wendy Rogers in a deep-red part of the state. HerCampus
🇺🇸 NATIONAL NEWS
ABANDONING US: After years of allegations that corporations that celebrate or amplify their brands during Pride months were doing performative allyship, the veil seems to have been lifted as many companies are backing away from support. Associated Press
NOT BITTER: In a first, President Joe Biden gave an interview with an LGBTQ+ newspaper, the Washington Blade. It’s the first time a sitting president has ever sat down with a queer publication. We’re not bitter (we also didn’t try). Washington Blade
WHY WE EXIST: A freelance transgender journalist explains what it’s like to try and work within a news landscape that forces them to question their existence, and if they’re impartial to report on stories. Columbia Journalism Review
IN-QUEER-SITIVE
Test your knowledge of this week in queer news! Answer the question below related to a story in this week's newsletter and get entered into a raffle to win LOOKOUT swag.
What is the name of the legal organization Stephen Miller helped start that represents Arizona Women of Action?
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