Do you ever ask yourself, “Is this still the United States of America?”
If not, that might be your response after the latest story out of Michigan, where Republicans are warning that a new hate speech bill could place individuals in jail for “misgendering” and hurting the “feelings” of others.
As The Daily Wire previously reported, the bill would make it a hate crime to cause someone to “feel terrorized, frightened, or threatened.” If this bill becomes law, then “sexual orientation” and “gender identity or expression” would be included as protected classes, and violators would be guilty of a felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of $10,000.
“It’s a bill that intends to bring prosecution for hurt feelings,” state Representative Brad Paquette (R-MI) told The Washington Examiner over the weekend.
“The bill is founded in pure narcissism and victim mentality that’s built upon gender theory. It’s one that seeks to force others who adamantly disagree with gender theory to live in another’s delusion,” he added.
Paquette took it a step further, saying that this was part of a larger assault on America as we know it.
“I think gender theory is one of the biggest threats to our nation,” Paquette said to The Examiner.
The bill has already passed Michigan’s House and now sits with the Democrat-controlled state senate.
Folks like the Wolverine State’s Attorney General Dana Nessel say that the law is needed because the current ones are “woefully inadequate to address the rise and escalation of crimes that we’re seeing today.”
Other Republicans, such as state Representative Steve Carras, argue that the law is too broad and would run roughshod over freedom of speech.
“This legislation opens the door to severe penalties for words,” Carra told The Examiner. “Despite some speech being completely reprehensible, one of the wonderful things about our country is that you have the right to say it without fear of government retaliation or oppression.”
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It is expected that Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will sign the bill if it lands on her desk. Last week, she outlawed conversion therapy for minors.
As this author discussed last week, consider how insane this moment in American history is: A sizable chunk of the Democratic Party believes that not only can men and women change their sex and gender through bodily mutilation but that minors should also be allowed to do so. The Democrats are so adamant in this belief that states are pushing for laws that strip parental authority away. Congress has to host hearings on the matter in hopes of exposing how barbaric this practice really is.
Now, Michigan Democrats want to punish those who fail to comply with their leftist ideology. Totalitarians are all the same, and their new issue to expand power is transgenderism.
The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.