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Alabama governor signs bill criminalizing transgender health care for minors

Alabama Governor Kay Ivey signed two bills on Friday that target transgender youth and classroom discussion about LGBTQ identities.

One of the bills It is a felony to make it a felony for health professionals to provide sex-determined medical care to people under the age of 19.

Her signature makes Alabama the third state in the nation to pass a transition-related care restriction measure, even though it is the first state to impose a criminal penalty.

Ivey said in a statement that she signed the bill because she believes “if good God made you a boy, you are a boy, and if he made you a girl, you is a girl.”

“We should especially protect our children from these radical life-changing drugs and surgeries when they are at a vulnerable stage in their lives,” she said in a statement.

Major medical institutions – including American Medical Associationthe American Academy of Pediatrics and American Psychological Association – opposes restrictions on gender-based care for minors and says they go against best practice standards and will harm the welfare of transgender youth.

Ivey too signed another invoice that would prohibit transgender students from using sexist school facilities consistent with their gender identity and would prohibit classroom discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in grades K-5 – use the language used in a recently signed invoice by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis that Critics have named the bill “Don’t Say Gay”.

Ivey called the portion of the bill focusing on bathrooms and other sexist facilities “a no-brainer” and said it would also “make sure our elementary school classrooms don’t have any form of sexual harassment.” What kind of sex talk?”

The gender-affirming medical care restriction will go into effect after 30 days unless potentially facing legal action. Two groups of civil rights organizations announced Thursday that it plans to sue Should I sign the bill?

The bathroom and education bill will go into effect in July unless it faces litigation.

Transgender youth in the state have struggled to bear the effects of the bills.

Jeff Walker and his daughter Harleigh in Auburn, Ala.  Stand outside the White House in Washington, DC during Transgender Day on March 31, 2022.
Jeff Walker and his daughter Harleigh in Auburn, Ala. Stand outside the White House in Washington, DC during Transgender Day on March 31, 2022.Jeff Walker courtesy via AP

9th grader Harleigh Walker, 15, spends her time after school like any other girl her age: doing homework, listening to Taylor Swift, collecting files and hanging out with friends.

But this year, her spring break also includes trying to convince members of the state House and Senate to reject two bills Ivey signed Friday. If health care restrictions go into effect, Harleigh will no longer be able to take testosterone-blocking drugs.

“Honestly, I’m a bit scared now,” she said Thursday after learning the bill had passed. “But we will still fight no matter what.”

Harleigh said she is raising hopes the bill will be blocked by the courts.

Alabama is among many states with Republican-controlled legislatures that have enacted bills enacted not only to prevent medical treatment, but to ban transgender children from using the restroom at school. or play on sports teams that do not match their gender at birth. Alabama’s healthcare bill is one of the most sweeping: It would send doctors to prison for up to 10 years for prescribing puberty blockers or hormone treatments for children. transgender children under the age of 19.

Transgender youth rally
Opponents of several bills targeting transgender youth attend a rally at the Alabama State House in Montgomery, Ala. On March 30, 2021.File Julie Bennett / Getty Images

“In a very cruel and cowardly day, the Alabama legislature,” said Cathryn Oakley, state legislative director and senior adviser to the Human Rights Campaign, a national advocacy group for the LGBTQ community. passed the only anti-transgender legislative package in history.

Conservative lawmakers say the measures are necessary to protect children and parents’ rights.

Representative Wes Allen, who sponsored the House version of the Alabama law. Allen cites public testimony from a woman who said she regretted taking hormone therapy to try to convert into a man.

“With strong drugs that have adverse effects on their bodies in the long run, we just wanted to pause it… give them a chance to grow and thrive from there,” says Allen.

But opponents say transgender health is being used as a deliberate political issue to boost the voting base – in the same way they say important racial theory bill has been recruited. Critical Race Theory is a way of thinking about American history through the lens of racism. Many Republican-controlled legislatures have proposed bills to block its teaching in public schools.

Measures regarding transgender youth have sparked a swift backlash from medical experts, The administration of Democratic President Joe Biden, United States Department of Justice and the families of transgender youth. Last month, the Justice Department sent a letter to all 50 state attorneys general, warning them that preventing transgender and non-bisexual youth from receiving sex-affirming care could is a violation of federal constitutional safeguards.

“My child is not a political tool. Vanessa Finney Tate, mother of a 13-year-old transgender boy in Birmingham, Alabama, said it was not a fair fight in a fair fight over a bill banning students from using the bathroom. corresponding to their gender.

Harleigh’s father, Jeff Walker, notes that many Alabama lawmakers who have supported the ban on sexist medical treatment recently argued, ‘It’s your body and your choices’ in relation to to the coronavirus vaccination. He said the family is currently trying to find another state where it can continue to provide medical care for Harleigh.

“We don’t want people to interfere with our medical care,” he said.

Harleigh received the puberty-blocking drug – which prevents her from going through male puberty – only after consulting with a team of doctors over the years. She said it was “strange” to see lawmakers with no medical experience calling her drug “child abuse,” when six doctors had agreed she should take it.

Similar bans are underway in other states.

In Texas, Republican Governor Greg Abbott ordered the state child welfare agency for investigation such as reports of abuse in transitional child care. And Law in Arkansas prohibits the use of sex-affirming drugs. However, that law was blocked by a court.

Transgender youth in many Indian states say they feel attacked, angry, betrayed and scared by the wave of legislation targeting them.

“It was like a stab in the back,” Harleigh said. “I have lived in this state all my life. For them to just say, ‘Well, you know what, this is a really common issue down the side of my aisle, so I’m just going to raise it and support it because it’s going to help me win. win their election’ – It just hurts to see them do so”.

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