So the mayor of our town decided that he was going to take down Target's inclusivity policy by requiring individuals to use the restroom associated with their biological birth gender and creating criminal penalties for both business and individuals using the "wrong" restroom.
The proposed ordinance was so poorly drafted that it was facially unenforceable. Not to mention practically and constitutionally unenforceable. I can't image that an actual lawyer reviewed this tripe.
Big protests were planned for the city council meeting where the ordinance was introduced. SS and TT asked if they could attend the council meeting and request to speak. I didn't have time to help out with their speech, but I told them to make an outline of bullet points to present.
We arrived to find hundreds of people there. The main room and overflow room were both standing room only. They turned in their form to speak, while I analyzed the ordinance and gave them a couple of pointers on the the legal aspects (and how bad this was for business, which I knew would resonate with out very conservative council).
The meeting lasted 4 hours, and they finally got to speak toward the end.
They were so great. They presented their points well, and worked seamlessly together. It was like, "Wonder Twin powers, activate!" They gained confidence as they went along, and yes, TT did get a little sassy and made everyone laugh. When they got done, even the mayor said it was the best joint speech he had ever heard.
Sooooo, after the citizens finished speaking (they wouldn't let anyone who didn't live in the city speak), the mayor gave his spiel about how ridiculous it was that we were even discussing this because he was just trying to protect our children. And then each of the councilmen spoke. And not one of them supported the ordinance. It never even made it to a vote, because no one would second the motion.
Y'all, I can't even describe how proud of my kids. They are natural introverts, but they spoke up in front of hundreds of people and the leaders of our community to stand up for their friends and their beliefs. That is freaking hard. It's hard to talk to a room full of people who are on your side, and it's even harder when half of them are completely against you. I think they were the youngest to speak. While most of their friends are tweeting and instagramming, they actually stood up and did something. It is the proudest I have ever been of them. They are awesome!
