By Mashaun D. Simon
The day before she was slated to participate in a silent protest at the Georgia State Capitol, Elizabeth Wagner had an encounter in a local print store that solidified the importance of fighting for the rights of LGBTQ youth in Georgia.
“I was busy getting things ready and texting with a friend I used to work with,” she remembers. “I shared with him that we were going to be at the Capitol and trying to see if he wanted to come out.”
The friend said no but suggested Wagner contact his aunt, who has an LGBTQ child.
“Anyway, we had a problem with the banner we were planning to use for the protest, and I was determined to have something that displayed what we needed to say, so I went over to one of the local stores,” Wagner continued. “The guy helping me pulled up the file and then went completely silent.”
Nervous that the worker could possibly be bothered by the message on the banner, Wagner braced herself. Instead, the worker did something else. He cried.
“He said, ‘I cannot tell you how much this means to me. When I first came out. My mother and my stepfather disowned me because of their religion’,” Wagner shared emotionally. “It meant so much to him to know that people cared enough to do what we were doing. That’s why we were determined.”
Wagner is part of True Colors Collective of Georgia (TCC), a group of mothers, parents, and friends, committed to advocating for LGBTQ youth. They gathered at the Capitol on Tuesday, Feb. 6, to protest the Georgia Baptist Mission Board’s 10th Annual Pastors’ Day. The event combined the annual Legislative Prayer Breakfast with Pastors’ Day. It attracted dozens of legislators, public policy experts, and activists “for the sake of advancing a witness for the gospel,” according to event organizers.
“They gathered pastors for a day of prayer and had speakers from the Alliance Defending Freedom to spew nothing but hate,” Wagner said. “Nothing but hate. As if LGBT kids, especially transgender kids, are the boogeyman and nobody’s safe from them.”
Alliance Defending Freedom defines itself as an American conservative Christian advocacy group committed to protecting religious liberty and expanding Christian practices.
It was Wagner’s idea to be a counter presence to the Pastor’s Day crowd,” said Andrea Kramer, another member of TCC.
“We all wanted to make sure that anyone feeling uncomfortable with their hateful message saw a friendly, supportive face in the crowd,” she said. “Elizabeth is the bulldog researcher, constantly staying on top of the hateful legislation being thrown at us and looking for the next outlet to get our message out.”
As a product of an independent Pentecostal Church, Kramer considers her faith an important part of who she is. In addition, she has a gay son, now in his early 30s.
“I loved my church growing up even though I saw some faults in their teachings. My faith is a large part of how I view the world, how I interact with the world, and how I wanted to teach my children to interact with the world,” she said.
As an adult, Kramer said, she took very different lessons from her religious upbringing than others.
“I wanted to make sure our young understand that there are Christians out here that love, accept, and affirm them,” she said. “I want people to know that you can love God and love the gay man or woman; that you can love God and still believe that your child is transgender when they tell you they are.”
‘It’s Necessary Work’
Beverly Wynne, another member of TCC, said she is personally offended by organizations like the Georgia Baptist Mission Board and Alliance Defending Freedom.
“They fed them breakfast. They fed them lunch. And they fed them hours of what I consider to be twisted, harmful theology that has nothing to do at all with Jesus and his teachings,” Wynne said. “I was specifically fired up for this particular day to be a voice in support of LGBTQIA youth. They are just vilifying and intentionally harming this population by pushing harmful and restrictive legislation in the name of religion, in the name of God!”
During the protest, said Wynne, one of the legislators embarrassingly pledged to protect one of the kids present for the protest. He kneeled down toward this “sweet, little precious girl,” described Wynne, and said that he would protect her from boys in the bathroom. He had no idea that she is a transgender girl.
“Quickly,” said Kramer, the child’s mother, asked, “How are you going to do that?” pointing out that her daughter is transgender.
“He didn’t just walk away,” said Wagner. “If a bomb were lit under him, he wouldn’t have moved faster.”
For Jeff Graham, executive director of Georgia Equality, having the voices and presence of the parents truly impacts the work of advocacy.
“There is, perhaps, no political force as powerful as an angry and pissed-off parent,” said Graham. “They are some of the most powerful and effective voices we have right now in Georgia. We saw that specifically last year as we fought so valiantly against two bills that would have restricted access to healthcare for transgender minors.”
There was another bill that would have forced schools to “out” transgender kids and create a very unsafe environment for them.
“While one of those bills did pass into law, SB140, the consistent presence of parents really did make a difference in how senators, even those that were highly supportive of the bill, thought of this bill. They humanized the issues and put faces on these young people, which took it from the realm of just a political talking point, which is how it started for many senators.”
Having parents like TCC present made legislators realize how their decisions were impacting the lives of real Georgians; many of them were their constituents, Graham said.
“But the other part to it, especially for someone like me who has been doing advocacy work for 40 years, it hits me personally that parents are so involved and fighting so hard for the love of their kids,” he said. “Those of us of a certain age grew up in an environment where very few parents were willing to accept us, much less willing to go to bat in a public way. And I think, especially at this time, members of the transgender community are feeling the brunt of the political attacks. To know that there are parents that love them just the way they are – no expectations, period – makes a difference.”
Following the protest, Kramer and Wynne returned to the Capitol to deliver letters to every Republican legislator. In addition to informing the legislators of who they are and their commitments, TCC also extended an invitation. They invited the legislators to meet with them as a small group to truly understand what it means to raise a trans or non-gender conforming kid.
“That’s the key,” said Wagner. “The more people you know, truly, the more accepting, we believe, you are or become. So, if you want to say, ‘I’m for this bill, or I’m proposing this bill,’ did you sit down with a family to understand how it impacts them?”
It can be draining work – showing up to the Capitol to protest, speak out against proposed legislation, or delivering letters of invitation to legislators they know have no interest in meeting with them. Still, it’s necessary work, the ladies said.
“I know so many people, so many parents and caregivers that just need support. They keep me going,” said Wynne. “Just seeing them and getting to know them, understanding them, gives me just a fiery passion. Add to that, seeing so many other grassroots organizations, like us, popping up in defiance of all the toxicity out there inspires me. Every time I hear of another group of people working toward a similar goal, it gives me hope.”
If Wagner is the bulldog researcher, as described by Kramer, Wynne is the group’s conscience.
“She is always making sure we take care of our members by using inclusive language, creating a safe space to ask questions, and encouraging self-care/taking breaks from the hard stuff,” she said. “I am the support crew, sign holder, letter writer, email sender, Representative caller, seat filler, and cheerleader. These ladies are true inspirations to work and fight alongside.”
