A Davenport senior takes Iowa governor to task
“Trans rights are human rights.”
That statement of protest was said by transgender student Clementine Springsteen, a Davenport West senior, as she stood next to Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds at a state award ceremony in Des Moines last weekend.
“I was in a situation where I was back and forth on it. I was going to make it a statement — no, I’m too scared,” Springsteen said this week in an interview with Local 4. “I’m going to make a statement; no, it’s going to put me in too much danger.”
But at the Iowa Governor’s Scholar Awards April 30, she ultimately decided it was a risk she was willing to take.
“I was terrified, but if not me, then who? And if not now, then when?” Springsteen said. “And I really just kept playing that over in my head, that if that is the way things go then that is the way things go. And I am ready to face potential danger to get my message across to make sure that I am heard and that my community is safe.”
Springsteen said it felt good to see two other scholarship recipients subtly voice their opinions too – wearing shirts saying “I Read Banned Books” and “Public Money for Public Schools.”
“It felt really nice seeing that I was not the only one who wanted to use this opportunity to air our grievances to the governor,” Springsteen said.
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In March, Gov. Reynolds signed into law a ban on gender-affirming care for minors, joining a growing number of Republican states looking to restrict access to the treatments for trans youth in America.
SF 538 bans health care professionals from giving medical treatment “for the purpose of attempting to alter the appearance of, or affirm the minor’s perception of, the minor’s gender or sex, if that appearance or perception is inconsistent with the minor’s sex [at birth].” The legislation went to effect immediately after the governor’s signing.
Health professionals found to violate the law will be subject to discipline from the appropriate licensing board and can face lawsuits.
Major medical associations agree that gender-affirming care is clinically appropriate for children and adults with gender dysphoria, a psychological distress that may result when a person’s gender identity and sex assigned at birth do not align, according to the American Psychiatric Association.
On the same day in March, Gov. Reynolds also signed a bill that prevents trans students from entering school bathrooms or changing rooms that correspond with their gender identities.
The new laws are part of a wider effort among conservative lawmakers throughout the nation to restrict the rights of LGBTQ Americans. So far this year, more than 400 such proposals have been filed in state legislatures, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.
Last weekend, Davenport’s Springsteen felt the need to defend her community against recent laws she thinks take away LGBTQ rights.
“I wanted to show her that we’re not going to be silenced — we’re going to be loud we’re going to be vocal and make you uncomfortable, until we are respected and we feel safe within our community,” she told Local 4.
This fall, Springsteen will attend Duke University and major in law, politics, and society and international relations.
Raygun — which has a store in downtown Davenport — recently introduced a new T-shirt, saying “Gender? I hardly know ‘er!” This shirt (Lemon Yellow Screen Print on a Heather Purple T-shirt) is made in collaboration with Clementine Springsteen and is benefiting Rock Island-based Clock Inc.
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