by Evelyn Pyburn
Democratic Representative Zooey Zephyr, HD100, Missoula, has been barred from the House Floor, Gallery and anteroom, for the duration of the State Legislature for conduct that supported a mob attack on the House Floor last Monday. Action taken by the House of Representative on Wednesday afternoon will allow Zephyr to participate remotely in the continued business of the House with opportunity to make remarks and to vote.
The action came with the two-thirds votes (68 -32) needed to pass.
Zephyr is Montana’s first transgender representative and has been championing the position of transgender activists regarding the numerous bills that were introduced this session dealing with transgender issues.
One legislator, Terry Moore,(R) HD54, said that he thought that the discipline devised by the House leadership was “reasonable and prudent” in that it assured the safety of the body and all who participate with the workings of the House” while at the same time allowing Zephyr to continue to serve the state and her constituents in HD 100. Moore added that it provides Zephyr the opportunity “to re-engage with the entire body in the future.”
Moore stated that Zephyr’s offense that occurred on April 24 “is irrefutably. We all witnessed it, firsthand.” And, he pointed out that news of the violations have been all over local and national media. He said he supported the disciplinary action because “each of us are responsible for the behavior of ourselves.”
According to a statement issued early Wednesday by Speaker of the House Matt Regier, the action was made pursuant “to the House of Representatives’ authority under Article V, section 10(1), of the Montana Constitution, for the body to determine if the Representative from House District 100’s conduct on the Floor of the House on April 24, 2023 violated the rules, collective rights, safety, dignity, integrity, or decorum of the House of Representatives, and if so, whether to impose disciplinary consequences for those actions.”
House Minority Leader Kim Abott stated that she agreed “you can do this by the rule of the Constitution … but just because you can doesn’t mean you should do it.” Abott said that there were other “tools” that Regier could have used but he chose not to.
But, another Republican House member, David Bedey (HD86) said in his comments that there were other actions that Zephyr could have taken rather the urging and cheering on the actions of the protesters as they shouted and clamored and disrupted the house. Zephyr could have left the floor as other legislators did as directed by the speaker or acted to calm the crowd down, but did not, said Bedey.
A week ago Zephyr made comments that affronted House Republicans and refused to apologize. Until Zephyr apologized, Speaker Regier refused to call Zephyr when she requested to speak.
Zephyr responded with a statement declaring “this is a direct assault on the principles of our democracy and serves to silence the voices of the community as well as the 11,000 constituents I represent….The Montana GOP has pushed over a dozen anti-trans bills this year – targeting our art forms, our stories, our healthcare, and our very existence. No amount of silencing tactics will deter me from standing up for the rights of the transgender community… I will not apologize for speaking with clarity and precision about the harm these bills cause.”
Regier said that no one was prohibiting Zephyr from speaking other the Zephyr by not apologizing and by refusing to recognize the rules of decorum.
On Monday a group of protestors, most of whom claimed to be from Missoula, descended upon the House disrupting business, creating chaos and generating concern for the safety of those present.
Media reported that “riot police descended on the Capitol Building after protesters disrupted proceedings in support of Zephyr, who stood and repeatedly thrusted her microphone into the air as the demonstrators in the gallery chanted.”
It took police a half hour to “quell the disruption”, arresting seven people. The disruption brought the session to a close. The House did not resume session on Tuesday.
Zephyr’s earlier remarks were directed at Republicans who supported SB-99.
Zephyr told lawmakers, “If you are forcing a trans child to go through puberty when they are trans, that is tantamount to torture, and this body should be ashamed…The only thing I will say is if you vote ‘yes’ on this bill and ‘yes’ on these amendments, I hope the next time there’s an invocation when you bow your heads in prayer, you see the blood on your hands.”
House Majority Leader Sue Vinton, R-Billings, responded to Zephyr saying, “I speak on behalf of our caucus. We will not be shamed by anybody in this Chamber. We are better than that.”
The purpose of SB-99 is stated to “enhance the protection of minors and their families… from any form of pressure to receive harmful, experimental puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones and to undergo irreversible, life-altering surgical procedures prior to attaining the age of majority.”
It identifies “gender” as being either male or female based upon chromosomes, further stating: “An individual’s gender may or may not align with the individual’s sex.” The bill prohibits surgical processes, drugs, hormone blockers, etc. to minors. The prohibitions only apply for minors who hold “perceptions” questioning their gender; they do not apply “to a person whom a physician has otherwise diagnosed with a disorder of sexual development…”
It also disallows the use of public funds to pay for promotion, advocating or providing the prohibited medical treatments. It provides for penalties of those who violate the law and makes them liable to injured parties, including the right of parents to seek compensation or punitive damages on behalf of minor children.
Governor Greg Gianforte amended the bill, stating, “Senate Bill 99 protects Montana children from permanent, life-altering medical procedures until they are adults, mature enough to make such serious health decisions,” His proposed amendments revised definitions of “male” and “female” and tightened the prohibition on public funds for any treatments or procedures listed in the bill. Republicans indicated a willingness to accept the changes and approved the amendments in a 66-34 vote.
Democrats, however, claim the bill is overly-broad in its prohibitions and none of the Governor’s changes help protect “trans youth from depression and suicide, which they experience at disproportionately higher rates compared to other minors.”
Majority Leader of the House, Sue Vinton, said that the incident on Monday was “appalling.”
In a statement released Wednesday morning, Vinton stated, “As Majority Leader of the House of Representatives, I condemn the disruption of our work on behalf of the people of Montana. The events that occurred in the House were unacceptable and endangered the safety of legislators, staff and the public. Montanans sent Representatives to Helena to pass conservative legislation and Republicans will not be distracted by personal agendas.”
“The behavior of Rep. Zephyr on April 24th does not reflect the values of Montana. Threats, bullying, and disruption have no place in our political discourse, and will not stop us from delivering policy for the men and women of Montana. Republicans are committed to finishing this session focused, safe, and productive. We will not be intimidated by extremists who seek to stop our good work in Helena.”
In speaking to the Yellowstone County News, Vinton expressed sadness that this has happened in the State Legislature for “no reason beyond the effort to get as much media coverage as possible.” Vinton said that it appears that Zephyr “came to the Legislature with just one agenda – to be an activist.”
Vinton said that the issue really isn’t about the legislation being considered, it’s about maintaining order and decorum in the House. The uprising on Monday fully demonstrated the importance of maintaining that order, said Vinton, who went on to describe that during the riot boys and girls serving as pages were hiding in stair wells, terrified for their well-being and staff people were very frightened.
The fear and uncertainty that the rioters generated underscored the importance of maintaining the decorum, said Vinton. The reason the floor of the House was closed on Wednesday was to make sure that the House members were safe.
“No one has explained to me,” said Vinton, “why just this one person should not be held to the same level as everybody else. Nobody seems to be able to answer that question for me. Why shouldn’t she adhere to the rules of decorum?”
Billings Democratic Representative Emma Kerr-Carpenter, HD49, held a different point of view, commenting, “Yesterday, I and the rest of Montana, saw the trans community, which has been attacked, demonized, and dehumanized all session long making their voices heard in the House Chamber – loudly and non-violently. They exercised their constitutional right to protest – a fundamental part of our democracy. The staff at the Capitol did their jobs to the best of their abilities to manage the situation so that I and my colleagues could finish our work for the day. I hope that we can move past this and use our remaining time to pass solutions for housing, strengthening health care, and solving the childcare crisis.”
Another Yellowstone County representative, Kerri Seekins Crowe also commented to YCN, “Make no mistake. The motion to have Rep. Zephyr removed from the Montana House Floor is NOT because Zephyr is trans and the body doesn’t ‘like’ his opinion. The motion has been made because he has chosen to behave in a manner that directly violates the rules, rights, safety, dignity, integrity or decorum of the Montana House of Representatives. Period.
“We’ve been able to debate, coexist and conduct business until Day 80 when Zephyr decided to encourage a riotous disruption that stopped the forward progress of this body that was elected by the Montana voters. And Zephyr has made it clear that he does not intend to change that behavior.
“Every Representative has a voice and every Representative has a responsibility to ensure that their behavior is respectful of others as well.”
