Transgender rights advocates are putting their legal winning streak on the line, bringing a fresh court challenge in Georgia after securing rulings in other states that have temporarily blocked or overturned laws that would restrict gender-transition care for kids.
As our AJC colleague Maya T. Prabhu reported late Thursday, a group of Georgia families filed a federal lawsuit seeking to stop an impending law from taking effect on Saturday, saying it strips the rights of parents to make medical decisions about their children.
Similar cases have already been successful elsewhere. On Wednesday, federal judges in Kentucky and Tennessee issued separate rulings that temporarily blocked similar laws in those states. And a federal judge in Arkansas overturned that state’s law banning transition care earlier this month.
Other bans were temporarily blocked by courts in Alabama and Indiana, while a federal judge in Florida issued a more limited injunction. Oklahoma officials decided not to enforce its law amid a pending legal battle there.
As Republican-controlled Legislatures around the nation pass legislation aimed at transgender youth, advocates have turned to the courts for relief. The Georgia case echoes those other court challenges, arguing that Senate Bill 140 is discriminatory and unconstitutional.
Gov. Brian Kemp and other supporters say the law protects children from taking irreversible steps toward gender transition, while critics say it denies the rights of families to choose care for their children and will threaten the mental health of transgender minors.
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Credit: AJC
Credit: AJC
LISTEN UP. There’s more than meets the eye behind a skirmish between GOP Gov. Brian Kemp and Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff over clean energy tax credits.
Friday’s episode of the Politically Georgia podcast explains that rift, and looks at how the recent Supreme Court decisions about redistricting in Louisiana and Alabama could affect Georgia’s Sixth Congressional District, too.
Listen at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or Stitcher.
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Credit: Jason Getz/AJC
Credit: Jason Getz/AJC
NEW YEAR, NEW LAWS. The transgender transition measure is only one of a series of new laws set to take effect on Saturday. That’s the start of the new fiscal year, as well as the enactment date of most laws passed in this session of the General Assembly. Among the other notable new laws are:
- Gang crackdowns: Judges will be required to impose mandatory minimum prison sentences of at least five years on those convicted of recruiting gang members, including members of their own families. It also calls for a 10-year sentence for recruiting anyone under the age of 17 to a gang.
- Prosecutor oversight: A new state commission with powers to investigate, sanction or remove local prosecutors will take effect. The measure passed despite backlash from Democrats and some prosecutors who see it as a power grab.
- Literacy Legislation: Schools are required to revamp how they teach reading in kindergarten through third grade under a literacy overhaul that also updates teacher certification and training standards.
- School Safety: Every public school in Georgia will be required to hold “intruder alert” drills and notify the state it’s been done by Oct. 1 of each new school year.
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Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC
Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC
AFFIRMATIVE ACTION. The Supreme Court’s decision to strike down race-conscious admissions in higher education brought condemnations from top Georgia Democrats who worry it will undermine the fight for racial equity and support from leading Republicans who said it would spur a fairer process.
The ruling will have limited impact on the University System of Georgia, which has not considered race in its admissions process for decades, the AJC’s Vanessa McCray reported.
U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Lithonia, tweeted a scathing critique of the 6-3 ruling. He wrote on Twitter that justices had “slammed the doors on Black and Brown folks after declaring that we now live in a color-blind country.”
U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk, R-Cassville, said the court made the right decision by limiting the use of race in admissions.
“As Chief Justice Roberts has stated, ‘The best way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race,’” Loudermilk tweeted.
One of the sharpest reactions came from Morehouse College President David Thomas, who called the ruling a “travesty for the nation” and predicted that students of color would face more obstacles earning admission to elite schools.
A consequence, he told McCray, is that applications at the historically black college are likely to double — “and a challenge for us will be how much larger can Morehouse be with the resources that we now have.”
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Credit: Anna Rose Layden/The New York Times
Credit: Anna Rose Layden/The New York Times
SCOTUS TODAY. That’s not the last consequential higher education decision we could hear from the nation’s top court. We are expecting a ruling early Friday on President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan.
Biden wants to forgive up to $20,000 in debt for about 37 million people. But Republican-backed states and conservative groups challenged his ability to do so without congressional approval.
The court could also issue a ruling on whether a Colorado web designer is allowed to deny services to same-sex couples.
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TODAY IN WASHINGTON:
- President Joe Biden will travel to Camp David where he is expected to remain for the long holiday weekend.
- The U.S. House and Senate are out for a two-week recess for the Fourth of July holiday.
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Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC
Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC
OUT AND ABOUT. With Congress on a two-week recess, members of Georgia’s delegation are spending time in their districts.
- U.S. Rep. Mike Collins toured an FAA communications center on Thursday. He also joined House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Sam Graves for a roundtable.
- Congressman Rich McCormick, R-Suwanee, has several stops lined up, including a meeting with the Atlanta Food Bank, a visit with the senior rabbi at Temple Emanu-El and a volunteer medical shift at the Good Shepherd Clinic in Dawsonville.
- U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff will be in Macon Sunday for a unity service at a local synagogue following the antisemitic demonstration there last weekend. Ossoff is the first Jewish senator in Georgia history.
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Credit: Alyssa Pointer/AJC
Credit: Alyssa Pointer/AJC
AROUND THE STATE. Also happening this week:
- At the state Capitol, state Sen. Sonya Halpern, D-Atlanta, will give Outstanding Georgia Citizen awards to four music industry professionals: Mike Philips, Kathleen Bertrand, Jorel “JFly” Flynn and West Byrd.
- Public Service Commissioner Tim Echols concludes his 13th annual Clean Energy Road Show in Albany today after stops in Savannah, Augusta, and Peachtree City.
- Earlier this week, Lt. Gov. Burt Jones’ staff held mobile office hours in Georgetown, Dahlonega, and Chatsworth. His office will hold a constituent services day for Fulton and DeKalb residents at the Sloppy Floyd Building.
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Credit: Hyosub Shin/AJC
Credit: Hyosub Shin/AJC
MOURNING KING. Christine King Farris, the last living sibling of Martin Luther King Jr., died Thursday at age 95.
Farris was a retired professor at Spelman College and considered the oldest living member of Ebenezer Baptist Church — the same church where her brother and father once served as pastor.
U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, who now leads Ebenezer, was among the elected officials who offered condolences.
President Joe Biden noted that he spoke to King Farris when she made an appearance at annual MLK Sunday services earlier this year, where delivered the sermon. He called her an “example of America’s promise.”
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Credit: Courtesy photo
Credit: Courtesy photo
DOG OF THE DAY. Is there anything better than the dog days of summer? Not if you’re this dog, Cooper Scott Dolson.
Cooper lives in Roswell with his person, Todd Dolson. But he’s happiest on a paddle board, seen here riding under the GA 400-Chattahoochee River bridge. A reliable source tells us Cooper doesn’t pick favorites when it comes to politics or food-— he’ll take it all off your picnic plate without fear or favor.
Have a safe July 4th, and congratulate this guy if you see him on any Georgia rivers or waterways. He’s our Dog of the Day!
Send us your dogs of any political persuasion and cats on a cat-by-cat basis to patricia.murphy@ajc.com, or DM us on Twitter @MurphyAJC.
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Credit: Chris Day/AJC
Credit: Chris Day/AJC
PROGRAMMING NOTE. In observance of the July 4th holiday, the Jolt will not publish Monday or Tuesday. We’ll be back Wednesday to catch you up on any news you missed.
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AS ALWAYS, Jolt readers are some of our favorite tipsters. Send your best scoop, gossip and insider info to patricia.murphy@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com and greg.bluestein@ajc.com.
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