By Howard Fischer
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PHOENIX — House Democrats lost their privilege Tuesday of using meeting rooms after they conducted a “drag story hour,” what Speaker Ben Toma called “radical activism to promote dangerously perverse ideology.”

An aide to Toma said his office approved the use the basement room based on a request by Rep. Lorena Austin to have a meeting with Planned Parenthood Arizona on legislative issues. But it was only later — just ahead of the scheduled Tuesday event — that Toma press aide Andrew Wilder said the speaker found out exactly how the Mesa Democrat was promoting it.

The event did take place. But Toma, in a social media post, said that never should have happened.

“Use of House facilities for radical activism to promote dangerously perverse ideology will not be tolerated while I am speaker,” he said.
Toma said it won’t happen again.

“I’ve ordered that Democrats have lost the privilege of accessing House meeting rooms until trust can be restored,” he said.

House Minority Whip Nancy Gutierrez insisted Austin was up front in reserving the room.

“No one was misled about scheduling this event,” the Tucson Democrat said in a prepared statement. “It was described as a drag story hour when Rep. Austin’s assistant called to reserve the room.”

Gutierrez said there was nothing “perverse” about it.

The move comes amid a session that has highlighted “culture war” issues, including various efforts by Republican lawmakers to curb certain rights of transgender individuals.

Sen. Janae Shamp, R-Surprise, proposed requiring insurance companies to pay the medical costs for those who want to “detransition” from their sex-change therapy and surgery. That bill cleared the Senate and awaits final House action.

The same is true for legislation crafted by Sen. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills, which would require a teacher to contact parents if a students asks to be addressed by a pronoun that does not match his or her biological sex. But even if it gets a final House vote, it is unlikely to become law as Gov. Katie Hobbs vetoed nearly identical legislation last year.

Another Kavanagh bill dealing with whether biological boys could shower with girls in public schools already was vetoed this year by the governor.

Hobbs last year vetoed four measures she said were designed to target “drag” shows and performers.

A spokesman for House Democrats said Planned Parenthood Advocates, the political arm of the organization, asked Austin to set up the event, with the group providing the performer.

It included performers in drag reading from “Queer and Fearless: Poems Celebrating the Lives of LGBTQ+ Heroes.”

“We ate bagels and listened to a person wearing makeup read a book and some poems about inclusion, acceptance and LGBTQ history,” Gutierrez said.

“It wasn’t perverse,” she said. “It was lovely, funny and inspiring.”
Austin, for her part, said no one was misled.

“We were completely transparent when we reserved the room, and the content was not, or should not be, controversial,” she said.

Austin, who uses the pronouns “she” and “her” and describes herself as gender nonconforming, said only about 20 people attended, all of whom were adults.

“It was educational and completely within the mission of our LGTBQ+ Caucus,” she said. “I will never apologize for teaching people to be inclusive, to accept others as they are, and to stand up to hate and bigotry.”

As to going forward, Gutierrez said there are efforts to “reduce the tension” with Toma.

“We are working toward a resolution but are not all the way there yet,” she said.