KS Legislators - Sustain an SB 233 Veto

Support the Trans Community and Trans Youth

Photo by Lena Balk on Unsplash

On this International Trans Day of Visibility, I’m sharing an email I sent to the Kansas legislature asking them to sustain a likely veto from the Governor on SB 233 - an anti-trans piece of legislation that bans certain types of gender affirming care for those under 18. If you have similar occurrences in your own state, maybe you could consider speaking out on behalf of the trans community and trans youth as well.

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Dear Legislators,

First, I want to express my deep appreciation to the legislators who voted against SB 233 and spoke very eloquently against it in committee and on the House and Senate floors. Your words and votes were meaningful to my family - they did not go unnoticed.

This email, though, is primarily for those legislative members who voted yes with some degree of uncertainty, conflict, and/or concern with some of the information presented by the bill's proponents. Assuming that the governor vetoes the bill, I'm pleading with you to reconsider your yes vote and sustain that veto. 

A wealth of facts, valid research, and expertise from those providing gender affirming care have been provided throughout the session (and in years past) - far, far more than what's been provided by the bill's proponents, so I'm not going to repeat much of that. What I am going to do on this International Trans Day of Visibility is share how this legislation, legislation like it across the nation, and the surrounding rhetoric impact our family. And for such impacts in general, I really recommend you read a recent Scientific American article on this: Families Find Ways to Protect Their LGBTQ Kids - https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/families-find-ways-to-protect-their-lgbtq-kids-from-serious-harm-physical/. 

Our youngest is trans. He graduated from high school last year. Like more and more young people his age, he's taking a gap year trying to figure out what his next steps are in life, working and saving money in the process. He hates politics. He hates it when we talk politics. He hates it because he's tired of being a focus of our nation's culture wars. He hates knowing what legislators say about him and other LGBTQ individuals (like he's just adopting a social media fad, that he's "troubled," part of some "radical movement," or, let's face it, worse statements that likely aren't quoted in the media). 

He hates knowing that legislators craft legislation impacting LGBTQ individuals and vote on it without knowing what it's like to be LGBTQ, without ever having meaningful conversations with someone who's LGBTQ, or conversations with those who provide gender affirming care. He hates hearing about other trans and LGBTQ youth and people who've been harassed and attacked, or worse. Nex Benedict's story was really hard on him (and the rest of our family).

He hates having that nagging fear about his safety in the back of his head when he's in public, just taking the bus, at a pride parade, etc. He hates being misgendered at work or elsewhere in public, and having to weigh whether or not it's worth pointing out relative to the potential reaction that might occur. He hates having to weigh the pros and cons, that vary by location, every time he needs to decide which restroom to use when he's in public. He hates having to worry about losing access to gender affirming care, even as an adult, because providers may decide it's just not worth it in such a hostile climate.

Some of you said this legislation isn't attacking trans people. OF COURSE it's attacking them. You are limiting the treatments available to trans youth that could make them feel whole, that could help them feel like they belong in their bodies, focusing on surgical procedures rarely used for those under 18. It completely ignores how gender affirming care is actually conducted, focusing on outliers and anecdotes. The rhetoric used in support of this (mutilation, equating gender affirming care to lobotomies, calling parents wayward) vilifies providers, trans youth, and their families. It is DESIGNED to attack the trans community.

[I didn’t include this in my email, but here you can listen to Senator Steffen offensively and ignorantly equate gender affirming care to getting a lobotomy (as well as spout other nonsense).]

I hadn't really thought too deeply about how much this has impacted my wife and I until I read the Scientific American article referenced above. The following two paragraphs should be illuminating to you:

"Discrimination against LGBTQ kids is also taking a toll on parents’ mental health, and the added family stress can make things even worse for their children. Studies show that family support is critical to the psychological resilience of queer and trans kids. But many parents are filled with fear, grief and anxiety, and the strain makes it harder for them to shield their children from the harshness of an often hostile world. 'No one can be empathic with your fists clenched,' says Lisa Diamond, a psychologist at the University of Utah. 'I’ve come to believe that we cannot help LGBTQ youth without taking stock of the amount of vigilance and worry that is eating up the nervous systems of their parents. You can’t heal one without the other, because if that kid really matters to you, there is no way that their fear can’t make you afraid.'"

"Diamond, the University of Utah psychologist, says this hypervigilant state can be devastating to parents. She has studied minority stress in members of the LGBTQ community and in their caregivers, and she believes the absence of safety erodes their mental health. The same response designed to protect humans from the proverbial saber-toothed tiger is now perpetually activated by headlines signaling that LGBTQ kids are threatened."

It's a stress that's constantly there. It waxes and wanes like all worries people have, but it's always there - and legislation like this just makes it worse. Do you want to know what one of my worst fears is? Something that sits in the back of my mind, that sometimes keeps me awake in the middle of the night? 

That both of my kids will be out together. That my youngest will come under some type of verbal or physical attack because he used the "wrong" restroom or because he's wearing a trans pin, or whatnot. That my oldest will step in to protect him and things escalate. And that both end up seriously hurt, or worse...

For those who think this overly dramatic or hyperbole, Nex's story is but one example of how anti-trans rhetoric and legislation contribute to discrimination and violence against the trans community (https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-anti-lgbtq-rhetoric-fuels-violence/). Senator Dietrich alluded to this (though not her intent) on the Senate floor when discussing her vote on the bill: "... she'd worried about the potential harm of cutting off treatments suddenly but has always agreed with people in her GOP-leaning district, who 'overwhelmingly' oppose gender-affirming surgeries for minors. 'Their anger regarding physicians and parents allowing surgeries on children is palpable,' she said" (https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/other/as-kansas-nears-gender-care-ban-students-push-university-to-advocate-for-trans-youth/ar-BB1kHFVZ).

How angry are they? What kind of actions would they take against my family or providers? Talk behind our backs? Talk openly to our face? Discriminate against us? Physically harm us? Bomb a facility? How far would it escalate? Voting for this legislation just stokes the anger when this Senator had an opportunity to help educate and de-escalate. And it's such pointless anger to have, because it's based on misinformation and outliers, a lack of understanding of gender affirming care and the trans community, as well as the nature of gender and biological sex.

It's not hyperbole. Senator Sykes was correct when she stated on the Senate floor that Kansas kids will die as a result of this law, either as a result of suicide or physical attacks. The rhetoric and bill's attention could still have that impact even if the governor's veto is sustained.

My wife and I are angry too - and our anger is actually justified. But lashing out doesn't help protect my son and make the world a better place for him and other trans individuals. So I'm asking those of you conflicted about your "yes" vote to sustain the governor's veto. 

Have some heartfelt discussions with constituents who are trans, who are allies, who are providers of gender affirming care. Read up on this. Delve through the information provided by the opponents of this bill, some of which explicitly debunks proponent testimony. Don't just rely on the limited information provided by the bill's proponents. Recognize that the medical professionals among the legislature promoting this bill have no experience in gender affirming care. After my signature, I've also provided some additional references for what's been going on in Europe. 

Don't succumb to arm-twisting, misinformation, hate, and bigotry. Please help protect trans kids and the trans community overall and sustain the governor's veto.

Sincerely,

Marcel Harmon, Lawrence, KS

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UK, Sweden and the Rest of Europe

There's been reference to actions in Europe as justification for this type of legislation. Note that what's been stated by proponents is generally half-truths at best, presented in a skewed manner to support such bans on gender affirming care. In Europe, these are not bans like we see in the U.S., but recommendations made within cultural contexts that haven't historically politicized or demonized transgender individuals to the extent that we see in the U.S. Though it's also important to note that globally (including in Europe) we're seeing an increase in anti-trans movements, influencing these growing recommendations and restrictions, especially in the UK and the NHS. It's also important to note that such recommendations, even though not bans, still have negative impacts on the trans community and trans youth. If you want to actually follow the science, then you must tease out the science from the politics, here and abroad.

Here are a few sources:

• UK School Guidance: Social Transition Bans Are The Next Front In Anti-Trans Laws Globally: 

UK School Guidance: Social Transition Bans Are The Next Front In Anti-Trans Laws Globally

• PolitiFact FL: DeSantis’ claim that Sweden ‘shut down’ gender-affirming surgeries is 'Half True': https://health.wusf.usf.edu/health-news-florida/2023-12-28/politifact-fl-desantis-claim-that-sweden-shut-down-gender-affirming-surgeries-is-half-true

• Fact check: Did Sweden 'shut down' gender-affirming surgical care for minors? https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/politifact/article/fact-check-sweden-transgender-18571187.php

• European Countries Restrict Trans Health Care for Minors: https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/articles/2023-07-12/why-european-countries-are-rethinking-gender-affirming-care-for-minors - "Deekshitha Ganesan, a policy officer focused on health at Transgender Europe, says something that’s often forgotten in the recent debate about access to gender-affirming health care is that trans people’s quality of life and, as a result, ability to participate in society, 'has improved so greatly' by having that access to such care."

• The Science Behind Gender-affirming Care for Transgender Youth: https://www.ebsco.com/blogs/health-notes/science-behind-gender-affirming-care-transgender-youth

• England’s health service to stop prescribing puberty blockers to transgender kids: https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/13/uk/england-nhs-puberty-blockers-trans-children-intl-gbr/index.html - "In the U.S. every major medical association agrees that gender-affirming care is clinically appropriate for children and adults. This includes the American Medical Association, the American Psychiatric Association, and the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry."

• Why a UK ruling on gender-affirming care for kids could impact youth in the US, threatening access to treatment: https://www.businessinsider.com/uk-high-court-rules-children-cannot-consent-to-trans-care-2020-12 - "Doctors and lawyers told Insider that this verdict that this won't simply impact transgender youth in the UK. It's likely to set a precedent worldwide as the issue of transgender rights — including access to gender-affirming care — becomes an increasingly mainstream conversation globally, including in the US. Their concern, they said, is that in the UK and beyond, children questioning their gender identity will have no choice but to go through a puberty they don't want, which can be a traumatic experience. Doctors from the Endocrine Society and Pediatric Endocrine Society drafted a paper listing the possible dangers of preventing trans youth from obtaining gender-affirming care, warning that this care can be life-saving.

• Transgender kids aren't just 'going through a phase' and develop like their non-trans peers, researchers say - https://www.businessinsider.com/transgender-kids-develop-gender-identity-like-non-trans-kids-research-2019-11 - "This challenges the idea that transgender children are "too young" to make the decision to transition socially or medically. And, when transitioning can mean the difference between a slew of mental health issues, trauma, or even suicide and living a healthier, happier life, these findings and their implications are especially important."

• Gender-affirming surgery is not banned for minors in Europe, but is mostly inaccessible: https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2023/sep/06/instagram-posts/gender-affirming-surgery-is-not-banned-for-minors/ - "Gender-affirming surgical care in these countries is mostly regulated through guidelines and recommendations, not laws banning care. None of these countries have banned gender-affirming care for minors outright in the way that some U.S. states have. Some countries’ health systems, such as Finland’s and the U.K.’s, appear to limit all surgeries to ages 18-plus. Sweden and the Netherlands have differing guidance for chest and genital surgery, and Norway generally advises against surgeries before age 18. But experts note that these surgeries are rare among minors even in places where they are legal."

• ‘We actually don’t know much’: the scientists trying to close the knowledge gap in trans healthcare: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/mar/18/science-knowledge-gap-trans-healthcare - "But away from the public debate about who should have hormone therapies and when, growing numbers of researchers are beginning to delve into their impact on the body in a bid to improve healthcare for trans people [NOT ELIMINATE TRANS HEALTHCARE] – and for the wider population." "... communicating results in a nuanced and comprehensive way. [The latter] matters when research becomes weaponised so quickly, because people will latch on to potential interpretations and misinterpretations and use them one way or the other as culture war tools that can do a lot of damage,' said Forslund-Startceva." Proponents of SB 233 are weaponizing efforts to further understand the impacts of hormone therapies to justify bans on gender affirming care, regardless of the wider impacts to trans youth and the trans community.