Governor Bill Lee signed a bill that amends the Tennessee code to apply biology-based definitions across all state statutes.
Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti, who has lead coalitions of states’ attorneys general urging the Biden administration to protect women and girls’ rights under Title IX, released a statement on the bill’s enactment, saying, “The Women’s Bill of Rights legislation codifies the long-established understanding that when the law refers to a person’s sex, it means their biological sex. Tennessee’s lawmakers have every right to reiterate that our laws against sex discrimination mean exactly what everyone has understood them to mean since the moment of their adoption.
Skrmetti added that the bill’s enactment “ensures continued protection of educational opportunities and privacy rights for girls and women.”
Inspired by the Women’s Bill of Rights, the bill, SB1440/HB0239, legally defines “sex” as a person’s “immutable biological sex as determined by anatomy and genetics existing at the time of birth and evidence of a person’s biological sex,” according to its official summary.
“Evidence of a person’s biological sex includes, but is not limited to, a government-issued identification document that accurately reflects a person’s sex listed on the person’s original birth certificate,” the bill’s summary adds.
Independent Women’s Voice, an advocacy organization that “fights for women and families,” commended Lee for signing off on the legislation, saying that the bill “protects equal opportunity for women.”
🚨BREAKING: Tennessee knows what a woman is!
Gov. Lee has signed Women's Bill of Rights-inspired legislation into law, defining sex-based terms — like ‘woman’, ‘sex’, ‘male’ — and applying the biology-based definition across TN state code.https://t.co/o8me0A96ok pic.twitter.com/Wia6PQeM5q
— Independent Women's Voice (@IWV) May 18, 2023
The group further stated that the newly-passed legislation will “prevent judges, unelected bureaucrats, and administrators in Tennessee from unilaterally redefining the word ‘sex’ to include ‘gender identity’ or from redefining the word ‘woman’ to mean anyone who “identifies as a woman.”
“At IW, we know what a woman is. And we are proud that Tennessee lawmakers do too,” Jennifer C. Braceras, director of Independent Women’s law Center, the legal advocacy arm of Independent Women’s Voice, said in a statement.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network.
Photo “Bill Lee” by Gov. Bill Lee. Background Photo “Women” by Joel Muniz.
What an absolute waste of time and resources. It doesn’t take legislation to define womanhood. If you don’t know what a woman is then you either are intellectually impaired or you were a recent Supreme Court Justice appointee.
Another law that is unenforceable while the government school continues to teach, under Gov Lee’s Education Department, the opposite. Grinding water?
It’s just shameful that this has to be done, but this is where we are in America. You got the Dodgers inviting the Dudes dressed like Nuns coming to their game June 16. I hope Catholics & all Christians will Boycott the Dodgers & all their Woke-a$$ sponsors.
We are in a Spiritual War in America. Christians had better get their priorities right. Including Pastors.
Who would have dreamed TN would have to do this?
It’s just common sense people. Thank you Gov. Lee!
Does he legally define men as well?