Q Center

April 10, 2024

The Dangers of Copycat Bills: A Closer Look at Anti-LGBTQ+ Legislation

The term “copycat bill”, otherwise known as model legislation, might sound innocuous at first. What harm could come from mimicking or modeling off of laws from other cities and states? However, when it comes to issues like LGBTQ+ rights, copycat bills can be incredibly dangerous. Let’s delve deeper into what exactly a copycat bill is and why its utilization in anti-LGBTQ+ legislation should raise significant concerns.

Understanding Copycat Bills

A copycat bill is legislation introduced in response to, or inspired by, similar laws passed elsewhere. Whether it’s a state replicating a law enacted by another state or a nation following the lead of a foreign country (yes, this happens), these bills aim to mimic the provisions of the original law or address similar issues. While the intention may vary, the term “copycat” inherently suggests imitation or replication. In recent years, copycat bills have become near verbatim replications of legislation earning such practice the nickname ‘Copy, Paste, Legislate.

The Dangers of Copycat Legislation in Anti-LGBTQ+ Context

Now, let’s examine how copycat bills can be weaponized against the LGBTQ+ community:

Nefarious Origins

While copycat bills are not a new concept, where they come from and why they have become so popular is relatively new, and deeply troubling. A groundbreaking study found that the majority of copycat bills are not actually written by elected legislators, but are instead written by corporate and special interest industry groups to protect a bottom line. Conservative groups, not necessarily made up of legislators, wrote the second highest number of copycat bills. As it stands today, the practice of ‘Copy, Paste, Legislate’ further subverts our democratic processes by circumventing voters all together. 

Normalization of Discrimination: The current use of copycat bills are often used to push a national agenda; this practice is in part responsible for the avalanche of anti-trans legislation being proposed across the U.S. When one jurisdiction passes discriminatory laws targeting LGBTQ+ people, legislators and special interest groups jump on that momentum to pass copycat bills in other region normalizing discrimination. These bills perpetuate the idea that it’s not only acceptable, but successful to legislate against the rights and freedoms of LGBTQ+ people, contributing to a broader culture of homophobia and transphobia. 

Amplifying Harmful Policies: Once anti-LGBTQ+ legislation is passed in one area, the momentum of that passage is wielded by copycat legislation to amplify the harmful intent of the original legislation. This means that discriminatory policies can quickly spread across multiple jurisdictions, amplifying their impact, undermining previous federal, state, or municipal protections and making it harder for LGBTQ+ individuals to live a life of safety and freedom.

Legal Challenges and Backlash: Copycat bills on their own are passed and implemented with less success than originally written bills, which is some comfort. Those that do pass or are introduced, are also easy to spot, so copycat bills targeting LGBTQ+ rights are thankfully often met with legal challenges and public backlash. Even when these bills initially succeed in passing into law, they often face hard fights from civil rights organizations, advocacy groups, and concerned citizens.

Takeaway

Copycat bills pose a significant threat when used in the context of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation. By replicating discriminatory policies,  normalizing prejudice, and subverting democratic processes, these bills perpetuate harm and actively harm the lives and wellbeing of our LGBTQ+ community.

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