THE
Daily
MISSISSIPPIAN
Thursday, February 23, 2023
theDMonline.com
Prohibition or permission? Mississippians at odds over the best methods to protect transgender youth
Volume 111, No. 19
Hotty Toddy Hoopfest returns for year two at Ole Miss Campus Recreation
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It was so much fun just because all the teams that were brought in were from different areas. We formed some good friendships, so we could scrimmage. It was a lot of fun bringing a bunch of teams together and having it in our town.
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HG BIGGS / THE DAILY MISSISSIPPIAN
Eli Nordstrom, president of Oxford High School’s Gay Straight Alliance, speaks at a rally against Mississippi House Bill 1125, which would ban puberty blockers and cross-hormone therapy for transgender youth under 18, on Feb. 11.
HG BIGGS
thedmnews@gmail.com
House Bill 1125, known as the Regulate Experimental Adolescent Procedures (REAP) Act, passed the Mississippi State Senate on Tuesday, Feb. 21. Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves is expected to sign the bill into law imminently. If enacted, HB 1125 would prohibit youth under 18 from receiving gender transition surgeries and prescriptions for puberty blockers or cross-sex hormones. The law would also prohibit the “use of public funds or tax deduction for gender transition procedures.” Physicians who violate these standards would lose their medical license and can face civil lawsuits for up to 30 years after the day the standards were violated. If Reeves signs the bill, it will go into effect immediately. The legislation has made
headlines both in-state and nationwide, compelling those who oppose the legislation to demonstrate against it. On Feb. 11, approximately 50 residents of the Oxford-Lafayette community gathered in front of City Hall to rally against the bill. The rally was organized by the University of Mississippi Democrats and Oxford High School’s Gay Straight Alliance. The rally featured speakers from both organizations, local drag queen Fendi LaFemme, and Jose Reyes, who represented Justice for Jay Lee. Thomas McGaughy, inclusion, equity, diversity, accessibility coordinator for the UM Democrats, described being transgender in Mississippi as “longing for acceptance, longing for normality, longing for healthcare, longing for resources and even just longing for a safe space.” McGaughy’s speech at the rally highlighted the fear that
many trans individuals feel throughout their daily lives. He said the bill is a legal attempt to “kill off the youth” that don’t fit into a stereotypical conservative ideal. “The only common treatment for transgender minors are hormone blockers, which delay the onset of puberty in children with clinical gender dysphoria, allowing them to choose if they want to seek transitionary care as an adult,” Eli Nordstrom, president of Oxford High School’s Gay Straight Alliance said. Following the news that the bill had passed in the House, Sybastian Smith, organizing director at the National Center for Transgender Equality, said in a Feb. 11 statement to the Campaign for Southern Equality that “governmental overreach
SEE HOUSE BILL PAGE 2
TREVOR TERMINIE
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Club and intramural basketball teams from colleges across the country will descend on Oxford from Feb. 24-26 for a chance to advance to the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association’s national championship tournament at the second annual Hotty Toddy Hoopfest, hosted by Ole Miss Campus Recreation. The regional tournament, which is one of eight in the NIRSA Championship Series for basketball, will take place at Turner Center for pool play and South Campus Recreation Center for playoffs. The tournament will have three divisions: Men’s, Women’s and Unified, which is a partnership with College Special Olympics. Ole Miss hosted the re-
- Sydney Foster
gional for the first time in 2022. Amanda Alpert Jessee, associate director of Campus Recreation-Programs and co-director for the tournament, said that hosting again in 2023 is a testament to the success of last year’s tournament. “The fact that this is our second year, we do have some returners, and our staff have seen it happen before just means that we can make it that much better,” Alpert Jessee said. “Last year, not everyone knew what tournaments were like and how we could make it unique to Ole Miss. Since we have seen it, we should be able to kick everything up a notch.” In Hotty Toddy Hoopfest 2022, Mississippi State won the Men’s division and Georgia Tech won
SEE HOOPFEST PAGE 9