The Coalition for University Equity (CUE) took to the south lawn of Parks Library on Tuesday in protest of House File 2541 (HF-2541).
HF-2541 is a Republican-backed bill that seeks to prevent Iowan cities and local governments from passing civil rights protections broader than what is provided by state law. This bill was previously entitled House Study Bill 664, an act relating to “local laws implementing the Iowa Civil Rights Act of 1965.”
The bill states that local Iowa governments “shall not enact any ordinance or other law which is broader or has different categories of unfair or discriminatory practices than those provided.”
Introduced Feb. 16, HF-2541 comes as a direct legislative response to the Ames ordinance passed Feb. 10.
The ordinance reinstated local protections on gender identity, prohibiting discrimination against transgender and non-binary individuals in housing, employment and public accommodations.
CUE, a local student-led activist organization, took the opportunity to protest the proposed policy.
Chanting through a megaphone, protestor Silvera Dudenhoefer, a senior majoring in animal science, described the back-and-forth situation as “playing whack-a-mole with civil rights.”
Jenna, a member of CUE who graduated last semester from Iowa State in physics and math, shared what brought her to the demonstration. Her last name has been concealed for safety reasons.
“I’m trans, and I see our rights being under attack every second of every day,” Jenna said. “Even if I’m not going to be [living in Ames] for much longer, I want to fight back against this with everything I have while I’m still here.”
Jenna emphasized the importance of protecting LGBTQIA+ rights in the wake of the recent legislation.
“Just because the government wants to discriminate against us, that doesn’t mean we’re going to sit back and just take the hate from them,” Jenna said. “We’re not going to let this slide.”
CUE Advisor Sophie Miles explained the core takeaways that protestors hoped to highlight to the community.
“We’re trying to send a message that no matter what our legislators do, that we are here,” Miles said. “We’re going to keep fighting, and we’re going to help protect ourselves, the people around us and the people we care about.”
HF-2541 has cleared its first subcommittee and is moving through the next steps of the legislative process.
“It’s passed through the first set of funnels, and it’s going up for the next set,” Miles said. “It’s still moving forward … we’ll see how it goes. The city of Ames did pass an ordinance for the protection of beyond what the state allows in civil rights, but this will ultimately eliminate that.”
Jenna voiced her personal message to the Ames City Council.
“Thank you for passing the ordinance to protect trans people,” Jenna said. “Even if it is about to be undone, we appreciate your efforts.”
To learn more about how to get involved in CUE, click here.
