Iowa has long prided itself on fairness and equal treatment under the law. In 2007, bipartisan lawmakers added sexual orientation and gender identity to our Civil Rights Act, affirming that no Iowan should face discrimination simply for who they are. Now, that protection has been stripped away.

The new preemption law prevents cities and counties from protecting transgender residents even if local communities overwhelmingly support those safeguards. For decades, cities like Iowa City and Des Moines have ensured that their neighbors are protected from discrimination based on gender identity. That local leadership has now been overridden.

This change leaves transgender Iowans without clear statewide protection from discrimination in housing, employment, and public accommodations. It also blocks communities from responding to the specific needs of their residents. Regardless of political party, most Iowans believe that no one should lose their job, their home, or access to services because of who they are.

We can have consistency in the law without abandoning fairness. We can support families, respect religious freedom, and still ensure that transgender Iowans are treated with dignity and equality. Protecting civil rights should not be a partisan issue. It is about the basic promise that every person deserves equal protection under the law.

We are calling on Governor Kim Reynolds, Iowa Senate Majority Leader Mike Klimesh, Iowa House Speaker Pat Grassley, and all members of the Iowa Legislature to restore gender identity protections to the Iowa Civil Rights Act and allow local communities to protect their residents from discrimination.

Iowa’s history includes moments when we led the nation in expanding civil rights. Now is the time to lead again — by reaffirming that equality under the law applies to everyone.

No Iowan should be written out of our civil rights code. Restore these protections and stand on the side of fairness for all.