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Residents urge St. Louis County to restore LGBTQIA+ inclusion at HHS conference
Summary
During public comment, residents told St. Louis County commissioners that removing LGBTQIA+ language from a county HHS conference endangers transgender, Two‑Spirit and other gender‑diverse people by undermining access to affirming health care and supports.
At a public-comment session, residents urged St. Louis County commissioners to reverse the removal of LGBTQIA+ language from a county Health and Human Services (HHS) conference, saying the change puts transgender, Two‑Spirit and other gender‑diverse residents at increased risk.
A public commenter told commissioners that ‘‘by erasing any mention of us at this conference, you are aligning yourselves with the federal government and abandoning Two‑Spirit, LGBTQIA+ Minnesotans,’’ and said suicide rates and barriers to affirming care make the issue urgent. The speaker also described higher rates of homelessness, economic hardship and violent victimization among transgender people.
The appeals continued when Sarah Jolene, a District 1 resident, identified herself and said she seconded earlier remarks about the conference language. "Health and healthcare is a human right, not a privilege granted to those who can afford it or those who are deemed ideologically worthy," Jolene said, urging the county to "recommit to serving the entire community, including Two‑Spirit LGBTQIA+ residents," and to make county public spaces available for workshops and speakers that serve those residents.
Another commenter who did not give a name said they supported the prior remarks and asked commissioners to "think about everybody in this community," explicitly including migrants, as the county considers how to serve residents through health and human services.
Speakers linked their concerns to national and state contexts. One commenter cited a warning from the Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention about early stages of targeted violence and said erasure is a core feature of genocide; another speaker said recent federal rhetoric has framed transgender people as a national-security threat. No county action or vote on the conference language was recorded during the public-comment period.
The Moderator thanked speakers, encouraged anyone else interested to sign the public-comment sheet and said commissioners and staff would be present to hear comments until 10:00 a.m. The comments will be part of the public record for St. Louis County as commissioners consider programming and language for HHS events.
