COLUMBUS, Ohio — More than 100 families with transgender members have made plans to leave the state after Ohio Republicans passed an override Wednesday on Gov. Mike DeWine's veto of a bill banning gender-affirming care.
Members of the transgender community are figuring out how to handle the next 90 days before the law goes info effect, and many are considering moving out of the state, LGBTQ+ organization TransOhio's secretary Dara Adkison said.
The vast majority of people trying to move are parents or guardians of trans children, but a number of trans adults and their loved ones have also reached out to the organization, Adkison added.
Ohio isn't safe anymore — and hasn't been — for transgender children, dozens of advocates have told News 5.
RELATED: Ohio Senate overrides Gov. DeWine's veto, banning gender-affirming care for trans youth
House Bill 68 prohibits gender-affirming care for trans and nonbinary youth, including hormone blockers, hormone replacement therapy (HRT), medical or surgical procedures and some mental health services. In addition to banning gender-affirming care for trans children, it would prohibit trans athletes from taking part in women's sports.
Along with requiring schools, state institutions of higher education and private colleges to designate separate single-sex teams and sports for each sex, H.B. 68 provides the opportunity for legal action.
RELATED: Six transgender girls play sports in Ohio, but GOP wants them out
Anyone who feels they didn't get an athletic opportunity or "suffers a direct or indirect harm" can sue the school and district, interscholastic conference or organization that regulates the conference. If someone feels they have been retaliated against for reporting a potential "trans" student, they are also able to sue. The individual must bring the suit within two years after the "violation" occurs.
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Betty, who has a transgender son named Parker, and her family have lived in Ohio for generations.
"We can't stay here, and that's the hard part for us," she said.
Parker is 16, wishing he didn't have to spend his time protesting at the Statehouse.
"My experience with Ohio has been difficult, but I still had the things I needed, the resources that I needed," the teen said. "This takes away my rights."
Minna and her family feel "disgusted" by the GOP. Her daughter Ember is now a transgender adult, but her son is still a teen.
"I've seen what it's done to our family and I've seen what it's done to my friends," Minna said, telling about a conversation with her son. "Why would I stay here?"
Ruby and his friends are also worried.
"This might be like my last night, this might be my last month," Ruby said. "If I run out of hormones at this time, this might be it."
Although it still hurts, Adkison was prepared for the lawmakers to take away health care for trans youth.
"We wanted to be able to support people as best we could," they said.
They helped set up an emergency fund for transgender Ohioans who need assistance leaving the state. In the past 72 hours, that number of people who have applied for grants has jumped to more than 100, according to TransOhio chair James Knapp.
That number continues to increase as dozens more families are waiting to be called back.
"A little bit can go a long way when you're in a crisis situation," Adkison said. "If you're saving every penny to move to another state, having extra cash for food makes a difference."
Also, some families may be planning to leave, but don't need financial support, they added.
People may leave the state, but it won’t make a huge difference, Senate President Matt Huffman (R-Lima) said.
"I don't think that this issue, whether we did it or didn't do it, is greatly going to affect the population of the state of Ohio," Huffman added.
It's common for people to threaten to leave, he said, whether it's because they don’t like tax policies or school.
"I think it's true of a lot of policies help and hurt whether people wanna live in Ohio," the GOP leader said.
While speaking on the floor and commenting to News 5, other Republicans acknowledged that people may move out of state, but that was okay because at least Ohio wouldn’t be providing these services anymore — care they say is inhumane.
Cities with liberal mayors, like Cleveland and Akron, disagree that it doesn't matter if 100 families leave.
“We’re extremely disappointed with the legislature’s override of the Governor’s veto. Parents and doctors should make these decisions – not the government," Cleveland Mayor Justin M. Bibb said to News 5. "I want the trans community to know that here, in Cleveland, we welcome you, support you, and stand with you.”
Akron's new mayor, Shammas Malik echoed the sentiment.
"Ultimately, we have to make sure that we are protecting young people who are dealing with challenges and trying to get the health care they need," Malik said. "I think that the way the legislature has approached this issue has been, frankly, bullying."
The city of Akron will continue to work to be a welcoming community through the city's civil rights ordinance and workplace policies to protect health care for trans people, Malik added.
The ACLU said they are evaluating all options, including filing a lawsuit.
Context
H.B. 68 was introduced by state Rep. Gary Click (R-Vickery).
Lawmakers in favor of the bill argue that trans teens don’t know what they really want, and their parents and doctors are pressured to approve of this healthcare.
“Parents are being manipulated by the physicians,” Click said.
Click, who is not a doctor and attended an unaccredited university where he majored in religious studies, said he has done hours of research.
That research, though, has been called into question by experts, and it consists of testimonies from detransitioners, disgruntled parents (some of whom have lost custody of or are in no-contact with their trans children), YouTube videos and articles from the 1980s that have been debunked or more recent pieces that have been widely criticized for being transphobic.
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