Audey Moritz was assigned male at birth, but from the age of four, she knew that wasn’t who she was.
“When I was younger, I was fixated on just being girly,” Moritz said.
With a new law removing gender identity from Iowa’s civil rights code, many in the LGBTQ+ community are speaking out about how it will affect transgender individuals across the state.
Moritz acknowledges this as a significant setback but says discrimination against the trans community is nothing new.
“Before, we still lived, we were still happy. We’re still thriving. We’re still not victims,” she said. “It feels as if the government is placing us back into this dark place. But we know how to thrive in that dark place.”
She believes many of those who supported the legislation don’t fully understand the transgender community.
“Let’s just live. Let’s just be happy. Let’s just love,” Moritz said. “If we allow this movement to make us feel like we’re going backward, then they win.”
As the transgender community navigates these changes, Moritz emphasizes the importance of unity and support.
“I think the biggest thing for the trans community is to just check on people,” she said.
