THE REPUBLICAN PARTIES IN ANY OF THOSE STATES. IT'S PROBABLY TENNESSEE. YOU MIGHT HAVE SEEN OVER THE WEEKEND THAT THERE WAS A WEEKEND RULING FROM A FEDERAL APPEALS COURT IN TENNESSEE. TENNESSEE REPUBLICANS HAVE BEEN GOING AFTER TRANS PEOPLE EVERY WAY THEY CAN. A FEDERAL APPEALS COURT THIS WEEKEND ON SATURDAY IN A DIVIDED 2-1 DECISION LED THAT STATE GO FORWARD WITH BANNING SPECIFIC KINDS OF HEALTH CARE FOR TRANS PEOPLE. AND THIS IS NOT SOME, YOU KNOW, SOME DISTANT THREAT OR SOMETHING THAT'S KIND OF LOCKED UP IN THE COURTS NOW. THANKS TO THAT APPEALS COURT RULING, AGAIN, ON SATURDAY, THIS WEEKEND, FOR PEOPLE UNDER THE AGE OF 18, THAT RULING THIS WEEKEND MEANS WHATEVER ONGOING HEALTH CARE THEY HAVE BEEN GETTING IN TENNESSEE, IT IS NOW OFFICIALLY ILLEGAL. THAT RULING WENT INTO EFFECT IMMEDIATELY. ANY SUCH HEALTH CARE, ONGOING HEALTH CARE THAT YOU'VE PREVIOUSLY BEEN RECEIVING HAS TO STOP IMMEDIATELY. BUT THAT'S ALSO HAPPENING IN THE CONTEXT OF THIS OTHER THING THAT REPUBLICANS ARE DOING IN THE STATE OF TENNESSEE. I DO THINK PUTS THEM SORT OF AT THE FRONT OF THE LINE RIGHT NOW. THE REPUBLICAN STATE ATTORNEY GENERAL IN TENNESSEE IS USING HIS OFFICE TO OBTAIN THE PRIVATE MEDICAL RECORDS, UNREDACTED FULL MEDICAL RECORDS FOR PATIENTS WHO HAVE HAD CARE AT A PARTICULAR CLINIC IN TENNESSEE AT THE VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER. HE'S USING HIS OFFICE AS ATTORNEY GENERAL TO TAKE PEOPLE'S INDIVIDUAL PRIVATE UNREDACTED MEDICAL RECORDS FOR THE PURPOSES OF AN INVESTIGATION IN HIS STATE ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE. NOW VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER SAYS THAT THEY HAD NO CHOICE BUT TO HAND OVER THE RECORDS AFTER THE ATTORNEY GENERAL DEMANDED THEM, BUT THEY ALSO DIDN'T NOTIFY THEIR PATIENTS THAT THEY HAD HANDED OVER THEIR RECORDS UNTIL AFTER THEY HAD ALREADY STARTED HANDING THEM IN. IN OTHER WORDS, VANDERBILT PRESUMABLY COULD HAVE TOLD THEIR PATIENTS WE'VE RECEIVED THIS DEMAND FROM THE ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE, WE DON'T WANT TO COMPLY BUT WE THINK WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO. WE WANT TO LET YOU KNOW BEFORE WE GIVE THEM YOUR RECORDS. THAT'S NOT THE WAY IT WENT. VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER REPORTEDLY STARTED HANDING OVER THE RECORDS IN RESPONSE TO THE ATTORNEY GENERAL'S DEMANDS MONTHS AGO, AND JUST RECENTLY LET THEIR PATIENTS KNOW THAT THOSE RECORDS HAVE BEEN GIVEN. SO ACCORDING TO REPORTING IN THE TENNESSEAN NEWSPAPER, THE ATTORNEY GENERAL HAS TAKEN PEOPLE'S MEDICAL RECORDS, HE'S ALSO TAKEN INFORMATION ON PEOPLE WHO VOLUNTEER AT THIS PARTICULAR CLINIC. HE'S ALSO TAKEN INFORMATION ON ANYONE WHO HAS WRITTEN IN WITH A QUESTION ABOUT LGBTQ HEALTH CARE USING A WEB SITE THAT WAS SET UP TO FIELD QUERIES ON THAT TOPIC. HE'S EVEN TAKEN THE NAMES OF PEOPLE WHO WERE REFERRED TO THAT CLINIC AT VANDERBILT, EVEN IF THOSE PEOPLE NEVER ACTUALLY GOT CARE THERE. THE ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE HAS COLLECTED ALL OF THIS INFORMATION, APPARENTLY DEMANDS ALL OF THESE RECORDS GOING BACK TO 2018, AND NOW THEY'VE GOT THEM. NOW, YEARS AGO, WE COVERED A SIMILAR CASE, AT LEAST A CASE WITH ECHOES OF THIS IN KANSAS. YOU MIGHT REMEMBER THIS STORY. A REPUBLICAN ATTORNEY GENERAL THERE NAMED PHIL KLEIN USED THE POWER OF HIS OFFICE TO GET INDIVIDUAL MEDICAL RECORDS OF WOMEN WHO HAD BEEN TO AN ABORTION CLINIC IN THE STATE OF KANSAS. HE AND THE STAFF TOOK WOMEN'S PRIVATE MEDICAL RECORDS, UNDERACKETED MEDICAL RECORDS, THEY CAN USED THE POWER OF THEIR OFFICE TO GET THEM FROM THE CLINIC, COPIED THEM, KEPT THEM IN UNSECURE CONTAINERS, IN PEOPLE'S CAR TRUNKS AND GARAGES, TRUCKED THEM AROUND THE STATE, LEFT SOME AT A KIN COE'S COPY SHOP, THESE ARE PERSONAL PRIVATE MEDICAL RECORDS, DEALING WITH THE MOST SENSITIVE POSSIBLE MEDICAL INFORMATION. THE ATTORNEY GENERAL WHO DID THAT IN KANSAS WAS AN ANTIABORTION ACTIVIST WHO REPUBLICANS ELECTED TO BE THEIR STATE ATTORNEY GENERAL. HIS NAME WAS PHIL KLEIN. HE ENDED UP HAVING HIS LAW LICENSE PERMANENTLY SUSPENDED FOR DOING THAT ABOUT TEN YEARS AGO. BUT NOW HERE'S THE TENNESSEE REPUBLICAN ATTORNEY GENERAL USING A PAGE OUT OF THE SAME PLAY BOOK NOW. DEMANDING AND GETTING UNREDACTED, COMPLETE, PRIVATE MEDICAL RECORDS FOR TRANS PEOPLE IN TENNESSEE. AS REPUBLICANS USE EVERY TOOL THEY'VE GOT TO TRY TO MAKE LIFE MISERABLE FOR TRANS PEOPLE AND THEIR FAMILIES IN THAT STATE. ATTORNEY GENERAL CHASE STRANGIO, THE ACLU IS SUING THE STATE OF TENNESSEE OVER THE BAN ON CARE FOR TRANS YOUTH. CHASE TELLS US TONIGHT, QUOTE, WHEN YOU HAVE THIS TYPE OF AGGRESSIVE INVESTIGATION FROM AN ATTORNEY GENERAL COMBINED WITH LEGISLATION, NOT ONLY DOES IT LIMIT THE CARE TAST AVAILABLE, IT ALSO CHILLS THE PROVISION OF CARE MORE GENERALLY. DOCTORS ARE LESS INCLINED TO PROVIDE IT, HOSPITALS ARE LESS INCLINED TO TEACH IT. FAMILIES, IF THERE'S A THREAT OF VIOLENCE OR MY KID'S RECORDS COULD BE EXPOSED, I'M OUT OF THERE. YOU HAVE THIS DYNAMIC IN WHICH CARE IS NOT ONLY BEING BANNED IT'S ALSO BEING CHILLED PROSPECTIVELY, AND THAT WILL HAVE AN EFFECT FOR GENERATIONS. MARGARET RENKLE, A JOURNALIST IN NASHVILLE, SHE WROTE THIS FOR THE "NEW YORK TIMES," SHE SAYS, QUOTE, TELL ME THIS ISN'T A WITCH HUNT. TELL ME THIS ISN'T AN OPEN CAP PAIN OF TERROR AGAINST ALREADY VULNERABLE CITIZENS WHO HAD EVERY REASON TO BELIEVE THAT THEIR MEDICAL RECORDS, THEIR MEDICAL RECORDS, WERE CONFIDENTIAL, AND EVERY REASON TO BELIEVE THAT THE MEDICAL CLINIC OF A MAJOR UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL WAS A SAFE SPACE. JOINING US NOW IS ALLY CHAPMAN, SHE LEADS A LOCAL CHAPTER OF THE TENNESSEE E QUALMTY PROJECT. SHE'S THE MOM OF A TRANSGENDER SON WHO RECEIVED CARE AT VANDERBILT. MS. CHAPMAN, I REALLY WANT TO THANK YOU FOR JOINING US TONIGHT. IT SHOULD NOT TAKE BRAVERY TO SPEAK OUT PUBLICLY AN AN ISSUE LIKE THIS. I KNOW PARTICULARLY IN YOUR STATE IT DOES. I'M REALLY GRATEFUL THAT YOU'RE HERE. THANKS. >> THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. >> FIRST, LET ME ASK YOU IF I GOT ANY OF THAT WRONG OR ANYTHING IMPORTANT THAT I'M MISSING ABOUT WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THIS SORT OF TWIN NIGHTMARE IN TENNESSEE RIGHT NOW WITH THE LEGISLATION THAT'S AFFECTING TRANS PEOPLE AND THEIR FAMILIES, AND ALSO THE SITUATION WITH PRIVATE MEDICAL RECORDS BEING TAKEN BY THE STATE ATTORNEY GENERAL. >> IT IS. IT'S REALLY COMPLICATED. AND JUST INFURIATED BECAUSE IT DOESN'T NEED TO BE THIS COMPLICATED. IT DOESN'T NEED TO BE INVASIVE, AND, YOU KNOW, THE ISSUE THAT WE HAVE IS THEY HAVE NOT ONLY VIOLATED THE TRUST OF PATIENTS AND DOCTORS AS AN INSTITUTION, BUT VANDERBILT HAS DEMONSTRATED THAT THEIR WILLINGNESS TO SHARE RECORDS WHEN THEY HAVE BEEN COMPELLED BY THE STATE FOR WHAT I WOULD SAY WOULD BE ANY REASON. I THINK THIS IS TELLING FOR PEOPLE WHO WOULD ALSO BE CONCERNED ABOUT REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS, JUST HEALTH CARE IN GENERAL, AND WHILE WE WERE WAITING AND HOPING ON THE COURTS TO BE REASONABLE AND MAKE COMMON SENSE RULES, RULINGS, WE KNOW COMMON SENSE IS ONLY COMMON FOR THOSE WHO HAVE EXPERIENCED THE SAME THINGS, AND THE REALITY IS MOST OF THE PEOPLE IN THE STATE OF TENNESSEE HAVE NOT INTERACTED OR KNOW TRANS KIDS OR THEIR FAMILIES, SO THERE'S A LOT OF MISINFORMATION THAT'S SHOWING UP, THAT SHOWS UP IN THE RULINGS, IN THE WAY THEY'RE BEING WRITTEN BY THE JUDGES. IT SHOWS UP IN THE DEBATES, IT SHOWS UP IN THE ARGUMENTS AND THE CONVERSATIONS AND THE HATE SPEECH THAT'S HAPPENING THROUGH BAD ACTORS LIKE MATT WALSH AND BEN SHAPIRO. >> ON THAT POINT ABOUT COMMON UNDERSTANDING AND COMMON SENSE, AND I WOULD ADD, MAYBE COMMON DECENCY, I FEEL LIKE AS TRANS PEOPLE AND THEIR FAMILIES HAVE BEEN ATTACKED AND HAVE BEEN DEMONIZED AND AS YOU MENTIONED, PEOPLE IN CONSERVATIVE MEDIA, CONSERVATIVE SOCIAL MEDIA HAVE REALLY DECIDED THIS IS A MEAL TICKET FOR THEM TO ATTACK THIS PARTICULAR POPULATION IN INCREASINGLY INTENSE WAYS. I FEEL LIKE THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENCES OF OPINIONS. THERE'S A LOT OF HEAT ON THIS ISSUE, BUT ONE THING I FEEL LIKE WHERE PEOPLE DON'T HAVE TO IMAGINE A DIFFERENT KIND OF LIFE. THEY DON'T NEED TO PUT THEMSELVES IN SOMEBODY ELSE'S SHOES. THEY CAN THINK ABOUT THIS THROUGH THEIR OWN EXPERIENCE IS PRIVATE MEDICAL RECORDS BEING TAKEN BY LAW ENFORCEMENT. AND IN PARTICULAR, IN THIS CASE, WITH THE MEDICAL CENTER, SAYING IT WAS COMPELLED. IT HAD NO CHOICE BUT TO HAND THEM OVER. NOT LETTING PATIENTS KNOW UNTIL THEY HAD HANDED THEM OVER. I HAVE TO IMAGINE, AT LEAST I HAVE TO HOPE, THERE'S SOME EMPATHETIC REACTION AMONG OTHER TENNESSEANS THAT PRIVATE MEDICAL RECORDS SHOULD STAY PRIVATE, THAT THAT PART OF THIS HAS TO FEEL OVER THE LINE TO PEOPLE WHO MAYBE OTHERWISE DON'T SEE THEMSELVES AS ALLIES ON THIS ISSUE. >> EVEN AMONG, YOU KNOW, EVEN AMONG OUR ALLIES, THERE'S STILL A LOT OF CONFUSION AND MISUNDERSTANDING, AND YOU DID, YOU NAILED IT. WE REALLY NEED TO BE TALKING ABOUT COMMON DECENCY, KINDNESS AND EMPATHY. THAT'S NOT WHAT WE'RE SEEING. WE'RE FIGHTING AN ARGUMENT WHEN IT COMES TO SCIENCE AND BIOLOGY, WHICH MOST PEOPLE DON'T UNDERSTAND FROM A 3rd GRADE LEVEL, OR ARE WE TALKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, COLLECTIVELY THE PERSON HOOD OF SOMEONE, AND THAT'S WHAT I REALLY LIKE TO FOCUS ON WHEN I'M TALKING ABOUT CHILDREN SPECIFICALLY, IS THESE ARE HUMAN BEINGS WITH LIVES. THAT'S WHO I'M FOCUSED ON, AND WHEN I TRY TO ENGAGE IN CONVERSATIONS WITH PEOPLE WHO STILL AT THIS POINT DON'T UNDERSTAND, I THINK, YOU KNOW, THAT'S REALLY CHALLENGING BECAUSE IT TAKES UP A LOT OF ENERGY AND TIME. AND DISTRACTS PEOPLE FROM WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO, WHICH IS TO PROTECT TRANS KIDS. WE DO NOT WANT THE STATE, AND WE DO NOT WANT THE ATTORNEY GENERAL, AND WE DON'T WANT THE GOVERNOR IN THEIR POSITIONS OF POWER TO ABUSE IN A WAY THAT THREATENS THESE KIDS. THAT'S THE REALITY OF IT. AND SOMETHING I TRY TO EXPLAIN TO PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, IN MY CASE, AND KNOWING OTHER SUPPORTIVE PARENTS, WE ARE FACED WITH A CHOICE. IF YOU SUPPORT YOUR CHILD, YOU'RE LOOKING AT HOPEFULLY A BRIGHTER FUTURE FOR THEM AND DISCOVERING WHAT THAT MEANS ALONG THE WAY. IF YOU CHOOSE NOT TO ACCEPT THEM, IF YOU CHOOSE TO PUSH THEM TO THE MARGINS AND ALLOW PEOPLE TO PUSH THEM TO THE MARGINS AND YOU GIVE IN, YOU'RE FACED WITH TWO RESULTS. ONE IS YOU NEVER SEE YOUR CHILDREN AGAIN. THE SECOND IS THEY DIE. AND PEOPLE LIKE TO SAY THAT THIS IS A HYPERBOLIC STATEMENT. IT IS NOT. I KNOW CHILDREN WHO HAVE DIED OF SUICIDE IN THE LAST FEW YEARS, AND THE POLITICAL RHETORIC AND JUST, YOU KNOW, THE CONVERSATION IS SO HARMFUL. IT IS SO VERY VERY HARMFUL. AND WE NEED THE BACKING OF OUR LEADERS AND PEOPLE IN POSITIONS OF POWER, AND WE JUST DO NOT HAVE THAT. >> NEED THE BACKING OF LEADERSHIP.
