If the Freedom Caucus truly cared about protecting women and children, it would focus on the issues that genuinely impact their safety and well-being: addressing Wyoming’s alarmingly high rates of domestic violence, sexual assault and child poverty. It would invest in education, mental health resources and community support systems. These are the issues that Wyoming families care about — not invasive, discriminatory policies targeting a small and marginalized group.
Opinion
In a state that prides itself on rugged independence, small government and respect for personal freedoms, the Wyoming Freedom Caucus is taking a puzzling — and frankly troubling — turn. The group’s recent hyperfixation with transgender people, a community of about 2,500 individuals in a state of just under 600,000 people, exposes a stark contradiction in their rhetoric and actions.
The Freedom Caucus frequently claims to champion limited government and local control. Yet, the legislation it champions under the guise of protecting women and children often amounts to a blatant overreach of state government power — restricting health care, banning participation in scholastic activities and policing bathrooms. These bills don’t reflect Wyoming’s values of freedom and individual autonomy.
You may remember that Wyoming amended the state constitution to strengthen residents’ freedom to decide for themselves and their families what medical decisions are best for their own health care. Article 1, section 38 reads: “(a) Each competent adult shall have the right to make his or her own health care decisions. The parent, guardian or legal representative of any other natural person shall have the right to make health care decisions for that person. (d) The state of Wyoming shall act to preserve these rights from undue governmental infringement.”
That addition to the constitution was overwhelmingly approved by Wyoming citizens in 2012, and yet 13 years later the Freedom Caucus is trampling the will of the people with its invasive obsession with controlling one of the most personal aspects of people’s lives: our bodies — specifically, in this case, the bodies of transgender people.
Even in small communities, the idea that these individuals pose an existential threat to women, children or public safety is not grounded in evidence. And claims there’s a pervasive problem just don’t add up: Wyoming’s transgender population makes up less than 0.417% of the state. What is grounded in reality, however, is the harm caused by stigmatizing and targeting an already vulnerable community.
Legislation pushed by the Freedom Caucus often seeks to restrict access to gender-affirming health care, ban transgender students from participating in sports or control which bathrooms people can use. These laws do not protect women and children. What they do is create fear, strip away personal freedoms and perpetuate discrimination. If you think these bills will only impact transgender people, you could not be more wrong.
Consider the hypocrisy. This is the same group that rails against government overreach, federal mandates and any policy they perceive as infringing on individual liberties. Yet when it comes to transgender people, these lawmakers are eager to enact sweeping government controls — dictating medical decisions, school policies and even where people can exist in public spaces. Their rhetoric about “protecting women and children” conveniently ignores the fact that these policies solve no real problems while creating countless new ones.
The Freedom Caucus’ fixation on transgender people is not about protection. It’s about distraction. It’s easier to scapegoat a tiny community than to face the complex, systemic issues that actually require effort and resources to address. And by weaponizing fear and misinformation, they are betraying Wyoming’s legacy as the Equality State — a state that, once upon a time, stood for something better.
Wyomingites deserve leadership that focuses on real solutions, not culture wars. The Freedom Caucus claims to stand for freedom, but its actions tell a different story. It’s time for us to demand more from our lawmakers — more honesty, more integrity and a renewed commitment to the values that truly define Wyoming.
Let’s remind them that freedom means freedom for everyone, not just the people they agree with. And let’s reject the politics of fear in favor of the promise of fairness and dignity for all.
How do we do this?
Attend the legislative session. Fill the galleries. Testify in committee hearings, virtually or in person. Call your representatives and tell them to focus on Wyoming’s real needs. Don’t let the Freedom Caucus’s state government overreach go unchecked. Wyoming deserves better — and together, we can make it happen.
Ever hear of the following word? TOLERANCE
I know a Trans individual who had a difficult time with gender identity most of their life. Genetic tests showed that different parts of their body showed different chromosomes. How does a person like that fit into the male/female arguments?
Thank you for your perspective into this issue of the transgender society that has long been part of the history here on planet earth. The mediocre mind is incapable of understanding the man who refuses to bow blindly to conventional prejudices and chooses instead to express his opinions courageously and honestly.
— Albert Einstein
The Freedom Caucus would have us believe that mustachioed, burly males are claiming to identify as female to enter female spaces. Thus, they seek to use the power of the state to force people into the spaces that reflect the gender listed on their birth certificate. They seem to forget what hormone therapy does. A simple image search for trans males will show the Freedom Caucus exactly who they are forcing into women’s restroom and women’s sports. Yes, there are mustachioed, burly males who have female on their birth certificate. It seems the Freedom People are not thinking this through. They are using the government to force some of the most masculine of people into female spaces. These are not serious people. Really, simple Google search.
Excellent article! It is so true that this group of people is misguidedly harming American citizens rights so they don’t have to do the REAL work of changing things to actually help women and children of this nation.
Eloquent. Succinct. Thank you for sharing Elliott.
Thank you very much for your brilliant article. I am with you and will do what I can from the opposite side of the state from the capitol.
I am so confused by the Freedom Caucus. I really am. They focus on issues that aim to alienate and harm a very small population of people in Wyoming. Yet totally ignore the big, huge elephant in the room issues that effect so many people in Wyoming.
Issues like affordable housing, healthcare (or the lack thereof), minimum wage for tipped people ($2.13 an hour anyone?), quality education, diversification of the economy, grocery prices, household energy prices and so much more.
Instead they are making laws to prevent people from using a persons chosen name. Does that apply to people who just have nicknames. Heck my brother goes by “Doug” a shortened version of his middle name. His given name is Steve. Does that mean he can’t ask people to call him Doug? How stupid is this bill.
Or how about trying to monitor toilet water for abortion pill chemicals. Something you cannot even monitor or bring back to the source. Lame.
Thanks for writing this. We need to remember the lame bills the Freedom Caucus passes when it comes time to vote again and work hard to vote against them. Enough is enough!
The freedom for me but not for thee caucus strikes again, targeting a tiny minority of living, breathing Wyomingites. This legislature will go down in our history as the worst for personal freedoms.
So, what is the real fix?
Gender, sexuality preference, who you love are private issues that are absolutely no one elses business. Voyeurs have been dictating who, where, and how to people for years. Just look at out dated statues.
Thank you for this well-written article.