Vermont case reminiscent of Maine middle schoolers identifying as cats.
As Vermont’s state legislature considers expanding the range of sexual activities considered bestiality, an alert GOP senator sees the handwringing on the wall.
During a recent legislative hearing on the proposed bill, Sen. Steven Heffernan, R-Addison, raised fears the measure may simply be a veiled excuse for Therians to escape prosecution.
“In these crazy times, what happens if the individual identifies as an animal having intercourse with an animal?” Heffernan wondered aloud. “How are the courts going to handle that?”
Renee McGuinness, policy analyst for the Vermont Family Alliance, said Heffernan isn’t far off in his skepticism.
“Sounds cray-cray, I know,” McGuinness wrote in an op ed for the Vermont Daily Chronicle.
But she said current legal reproductive rights and an upcoming election on an equal-rights amendment in Vermont make the question worthy of consideration.
“Would the state have the legal legs to enforce its own bestiality laws if a Therian sued the state for its right to engage in sexual activity with an animal?” McGuinness asked rhetorically.
A growing number of children identify as Therians, aka animals, according to an article in Mamamia, a publication and podcast in Australia, that McGuinness highlighted.
“According to the article, adults with psychology degrees advise parents to encourage their Therian-identifying children to explore their animal identity,” she said. “If a minor identifies as an animal, would they also be exempt from Vermont’s bestiality laws which apply to humans, not animals?
“What if both an adult and a child identify as animals? Would Vermont’s bestiality laws apply to them as a couple?
“If schools are encouraging students to explore their sexual identity through kindergarten classroom books and Vermont Agency of Education’s LGBTQ+-inclusive sex education, are some school personnel also encouraging students to explore their animal identity?”
Heffernan said he’d reluctantly vote for the bill, H.578, “but I wanna make this chamber aware of what’s coming.”
