The 2023 Louisiana Regular Legislative Session met for the first time on Monday. The session will last no later than June 8.
Several bills limiting LGBTQ+ rights may reach the floor of the capitol. Rep. Gabe Firment’s House Bill 463, titled the “Save Adolescents From Experimentation Act,” attempts to prohibit minors from receiving gender-affirming care. Rep. Dodie Horton’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill failed in 2022, so she is reintroducing a new version in House Bill 466. Similar bills regarding the culture war over the rights of LGBTQ+ youth have emerged in states such as Tennessee, Florida and North Dakota. Support for these bills has been mixed throughout the state; in 2022, New Orleans high school students hosted a walkout to protest anti-transgender legislation in Louisiana. The legislature continuesto propose anti-LGBTQ+ law.
Six bills pertain to abortion, which is completely banned in Louisiana. House Bill 346 in regards to terminating a pregnancy “adds rape and incest to the list of acts performed by a physician that shall not be considered an abortion.”
According to EveryLibrary, the current Louisiana legislative session has five bills that “would limit Americans’ freedom to read and think for themselves.” Senate Bill 7 authored by Rep. Heather Cloud seeks to prevent minors from checking out “sexually explicit materials” from libraries, sparking acontroversy over book bans and comprehensive sex education.
