GOP Oklahoma lawmaker criticized for transgender comments

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — An Oklahoma lawmaker who helped revive an anti-transgender bill is coming under fire for saying transgender people “have a mental illness.”

Rep. Justin Humphrey made the comment in an email exchange with a woman who was urging him to vote against the bill. Humphrey defended his comments in an interview Friday with The Associated Press.

Studies of the brain have indicated that allowing trans youth to affirm their gender identity is good for their mental health. Some trans adults have described a youth of suppressed identity as a survivalist fugue state leaving them with few to no memories of their childhoods.

Oklahoma is one of more than a dozen states where lawmakers are proposing restrictions on athletics or gender-confirming health care for trans minors this year.

Opponents of the bill have expressed concern its passage could lead to the NCAA moving its College Softball World Series from Oklahoma.