On April 5, Idaho’s governor signed a bill criminalizing gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors. In response to this new bill, an 18-year-old Idaho school board member posted a vile, profane message on Twitter for the governor, saying he will be “p***ing on [his] grave” when he dies.
Idaho Governor Brad Little (R) made his state the 12th state to pass a law that restricts or bans gender-affirming care for minors. This law will take effect in January and will make it a felony for anyone to provide hormones, puberty blockers, or other types of gender-affirming care to people under 18.
In his transmittal letter, Gov. Little wrote, “In signing this bill, I recognize our society plays a role in protecting minors from surgeries or treatments that can irreversibly damage their healthy bodies. However, as policymakers, we should take great caution whenever we consider allowing the government to interfere with loving parents and their decisions about what is best for their children.”
As expected, many people spoke out in opposition to this bill, suggesting that more trans youths will commit suicide if they are unable to obtain gender-affirming care.
One vocal critic of this bill is 18-year-old Shiva Rajbhandari, an Idaho school board trustee who posted a vulgar message on Twitter for Gov. Little:
“F*** you [Governor Litte]. I pray you live a long life so you can bear witness to the pain you’ve unleashed on Idaho’s children and families today. When you do die though, I’m p***ing on your grave.”
This law is unconstitutional. When government begins to intrude on the inalienable rights of the people, it forfeits any form of legitimacy. It is not just our right but our duty to stand up to tyranny. We will never EVER stop fighting for our trans and non-binary youth. 🏳️⚧️🏳️🌈
— Shiva Rajbhandari (@_Shiva_R) April 5, 2023
Rajbhandari, who is the first student to ever serve on the school board, issued a statement about this tweet after he received backlash for it.
“I have received some concerns that the language in my last tweet was inappropriate and inconsistent with my position as a school board member,” wrote Rajbhandari. “Of course, my tweets are my own only and do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization with which I am affiliated, nor would I engage or condone such sentiment or language in a board meeting or a classroom.”
“My strong language is reflective of my anger and frustration with the pointlessness of diplomatic dialogue with legislators and a governor who have shown such little regard for the lives of Idaho youth,” he continued. “The hypocrisy of suggesting that a profane tweet is more harmful than what HB 71 could unleash on our trans and non-binary youth baffles me. I remain unapologetic in my commitment to our LGBTQ+ community.”
