A gay doctor who is one of Louisiana’s only specialist paediatric cardiologists has left the state after the introduction of a Don’t Say Gay copycat bill and a ban on gender-affirming care for trans youth.
Jake Kleinmahon, who was one of just three doctors specialising in heart transplants for children in Louisiana, chose to leave the state with his family, as they no longer felt safe.
Kleinmahon met and fell in love with his husband Tom in New Orleans, and the couple expected remain in Louisiana, even after retirement. However, he told CNN that the state’s anti-LGBTQ+ legislation made him and his family feel unwelcome and that he ultimately “didn’t have a choice”.
That’s might have been in Florida, not Louisiana, but it wouldn’t surprise me if this happens.
Just like the anti-gender affirming treatment bills that were supposedly only for minors because “we’ve got to stop kids from making decisions they’ll regret.” Later, of course, some right wing areas extended those bans to adults, dropping the “protect the children” mask that we were all able to see past anyway.