1. United States
2. Fla.
3. Letter

I am writing to strongly oppose the amended provisions added to H.R. 1329, the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum Act. A museum dedicated to women’s history should expand public understanding and inclusion, not codify blatant discrimination. To quote verbatim from one provision: “(c) SCOPE OF MISSION. — (2) PROHIBITION. — The Museum may not identify, present, describe, or otherwise depict any biological male as female.” The exact wording in this language that is restricting recognition of transgender women and policing who may be represented in exhibits is outright discriminatory by its transphobic nature. It weaponizes a cultural institution to exclude a vulnerable community and undermines the Smithsonian’s mission to present honest, rigorous, and representative history. Whether you accept it or not, transgender women have ALWAYS existed and have contributed to American society, activism, science, labor, and culture. Erasing them from historical narratives does not protect women’s history — it distorts it. Congress should reject efforts to politicize this museum through exclusionary mandates and instead support a vision that reflects the full diversity of every women’s experiences in America, both cisgender and transgender. With future votes and revisions still possible, lawmakers should act now to remove these discriminatory provisions and restore the bill’s original bipartisan intent. If these provisions still remain on that bill, then there is the opportunity to vote NO on it. Otherwise, history will hold you culpable if you voted for it or supported it.