Neil Rafferty, Alabama’s only openly gay legislator: ‘Why n’t we jt let people live their liv this state?’

Contents:

• FOR ALABAMA’S ONLY GAY LAWMAKER, A POLIL DEFEAT WAS DEEPLY PERSONAL
• NEIL RAFFERTY, ALABAMA’S ONLY OPENLY GAY LEGISLATOR: ‘WHY N’T WE JT LET PEOPLE LIVE THEIR LIV THIS STATE?’

FOR ALABAMA’S ONLY GAY LAWMAKER, A POLIL DEFEAT WAS DEEPLY PERSONAL

AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTNeil Rafferty’s paful experience as a young man fluenced his efforts to block new rtrictns on gay and transgenr youth. That legislatn also limed classroom discsns on genr and sexual orientatn, siar to a Florida measure rid by crics as “Don’t Say Gay.

Kay Ivey, a Republin, signed both measur the followg legislatn, now facg legal challeng, is part of a wave of bills about gay and transgenr youth beg bated and some s approved by nservative lawmakers across the untry. Rafferty, a Democrat and the only openly gay member of the Alabama Legislature, the new laws reprented not jt a polil feat but a eply personal one, too — a velopment he had trouble discsg whout Welsh/The Montgomery Advertiser, via Associated Prs“I jt still don’t really know how to feel other than jt feel angry and worried about all the kids and their fai who have been reachg out to me, ” he said.

NEIL RAFFERTY, ALABAMA’S ONLY OPENLY GAY LEGISLATOR: ‘WHY N’T WE JT LET PEOPLE LIVE THEIR LIV THIS STATE?’

Rafferty, 37, told his lleagu about the difficulty of growg up gay Alabama, was om paful personal and raised Birmgham, he first me out as gay 1998. He ran for the Legislature 2018, beg only the send openly gay lawmaker elected the state. Rafferty, too, has spent his term the Legislature workg to prevent new rtrictns on gay and transgenr young people.

He nnected nstuents wh Republin proponents of the measur, hopg to change the lawmakers’ mds by makg them more fortable wh gay and transgenr people and explag the burns they said such legislatn would create. ”His efforts were weled by gay and transgenr rints, who saw him as a sgularly important ally.