Jill Schramm/MDN Kalyn Dewitt holds a sign at Saturday’s legislative forum in Minot to protest some of the bills being debated at the Capitol.

Kalyn Dewitt of Minot said it was a sense of frustration with the number of religious and anti-LGBTQ+ bills that brought her to last Saturday’s legislative forum in Minot in costume, toting signs.

“It’s just getting to be too much,” said Dewitt, who dressed in an outfit symbolic of the main character in “The Handmaid’s Tale,” a fictional drama series about totalitarian theocracy in the former United States.

Several questions asked of legislators also indicated frustration by some legislative forum participants over values legislation. However, Dewitt said she felt the need to take the next step. She held up signs — “Government shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion” and “Christian nationalism creates division and oppression.”

The impetus that finally pushed her to take that step was House Concurrent Resolution 3020, acknowledging the kingship of Jesus Christ, Dewitt said.

“I just think it blatantly violates religious freedom,” she said.

Rep. Macy Bolinske said at the forum that she voted in committee against the resolution.

“While I believe the intent of the sponsor came from a good place, I ultimately voted no, and it’s not that I don’t believe that,” she said. One of the Bible verses not fully included in the resolution states the kingship of Christ already has been declared over the whole world, she noted. For that reason, she said, she doesn’t see a need for the resolution.

Senate Bill 2355, requiring teaching intelligent design or creationism in schools, received a committee hearing in the Senate last Wednesday.

“I support the bill because, frankly, I’m a Christian,” co-sponsor Sen. David Hogue said. “I believe in God and I think that should be part of education, even in public education.”

Asked about teaching other creation stories outside of Christianity’s creation story, Hogue offered no resistance.

“I would say, open it up to all religions. That’s part of the educational process – that you hear all points of view,” he said.

Legislators also took questions on explicit material in libraries and on the restroom provision of a bill relating to transgender students.

The restroom bill, as passed 73-18 by the House, states restrooms or shower rooms on school grounds that are accessible by multiple individuals at a time must be designated for use exclusively for males or exclusively for females. Multi-stall or multi-room gender neutral restrooms and shower rooms, as well as communal sinks or communal areas where students enter and exit an individual stall or room, are prohibited. A concern is how the bill might affect gender neutral options at Minot’s new high school, Minot North.

Bolinske said the bill was introduced to address schools without restrooms designed just for males or females.

“I think the reason it passed is we did see a need for enforcement when it came to girls not feeling safe in their own bathroom,” she said.

Sen. Bob Paulson said Senate Bill 2307, prohibiting explicit content in areas of public libraries accessible by minors, would not require ID checks to access library materials.

“There shouldn’t be much cost to this bill. The books are fairly well known. The topic has been going on for a while. They just want to put those books in an area that’s not easily accessible to children,” he said. It still allows parents to enter those areas and even check out books for their children, he said.

Sen. Jose Castaneda said the legislation would not affect placement of the Bible, which has some sexual themes, because the bill exempts items of literary, artistic, political or scientific value.