Advance of anti-trans bills

Laws across the nation have prohibiting transgender minors from receiving gender-affirming care

Milly Miao, Staff Writer

Anya Biswas, Staff Writer & Carter Willis, Sports Editor

Across the country, over 300 bills restricting LGBTQIA+ rights have been proposed in 2023 alone. As visibility increases, there has been an increase in the number of bills that target transgender rights and access to gender-affirming healthcare; Georgia has not been any different.

On March 23, 2023, Gov. Brian Kemp signed Senate Bill 140, which prohibits transgender people under the age of 18 from receiving hormone replacement therapy and sex reassignment surgeries at hospitals and other licensed healthcare facilities. When it goes into effect on July 1, minors will no longer be able to get hormone replacement therapy and gender-affirming surgeries.

Ryan Kann, a student member of the trans community at Georgia Tech, has voiced his opinion on SB 140, noting its harmful effects. Since his transition in high school, he is involved in activism for trans rights and he was named the 2022 LGBTQIA+ student of the year at Georgia Tech.

Kann notes that this bill does not ban puberty blockers; however, he believes that puberty blockers are only a temporary solution. While puberty blockers are helpful during the time period administered, being on puberty blockers for too long, can be detrimental to the health of the teenager.

“I probably started puberty when I was eight,” Kann said. “If I had to be on puberty blockers from eight to 18, it would have been detrimental to my bone health. That is why puberty blockers are usually only used for two to three years before people start on cross-sex hormones or hormone replacement therapy.”

To Kann, it is a basic necessity for trans individuals to have access to cross-sex hormones or hormone replacement therapy. Kann says that the fact that SB 140 would prevent youth from having access to these basic necessities is unacceptable. In addition, he believes that it would be more positive for the mental health of trans youth to have access to these transition options.

“You can look at practically any study and see the positive mental health effects of being able to access gender-affirming care. There are some studies that even say that the mental health rates of trans kids who have been allowed to transition socially and medically are exactly at the same rates as their cisgender counterparts,” Kann said.

People whose gender identity differs from their gender assigned at birth are diagnosed with gender dysphoria. The American Psychological Association replaced the previous diagnosis of gender identity disorder with gender dysphoria in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Experiencing gender dysphoria comes with increased suicidal thoughts, self-harm, anxiety, and depression. To trans activists like Kann, transitioning with gender-affirming care is the best solution to this problem.

“And you would think at this point, if just going to therapy would work - essentially what they’re encouraging is conversion therapy - they would have done that by now. It doesn't work,” Kann said. “The only treatment for gender dysphoria is transitioning, that is the treatment, and they are banning the treatment.”

To Kann, transitioning is the clear solution for trans youth. The solution to preventing bills like SB 140 from taking effect is to vote and protest. However, with the majority of the Georgia legislature approving bills like SB 140, it is clear that similar bills are likely to pass in the future. To stop those bills, Kann believes that legal action is the proper route to take.

“I think that the reality is all of these bills are going to pass,” Kann said. “But the politicians know that it’s not going to stand up in court. Several of them have already been blocked in court because [the courts] know they’re unconstitutional, and it’s pretty easy to see that they’re unconstitutional.”

The Georgia Youth Justice Coalition (GYJC), made up of students ages 14-22, fights for educational justice through legislative advocacy, community organizing, and storytelling. They work with school boards and the Georgia General Assembly to stop book bans and stop bills specifically targeting minorities.

“It is a common part of our culture to then go and blame that on people who are marginalized,” Matéo Penado, college student and activist of GYJC said.

The reasoning for passing SB 140 is that children need time to mature and develop their own gender identity. Additionally, the General Assembly wants to protect children from making any permanent physical. However, according to the Mayo Clinic, babies understand the concept of gender identity by age 3.

“The idea that a child’s feelings are any less valid and feeling a certain way about their gender than an adult is so nonsensical,” Logan Cosper, a sophomore at Northview High School, said.

Transgender history and gender transformation are not widely taught in public and private schools. In American society, it is considered a sensitive political issue therefore teachers are not permitted to discuss it in the classroom. Several conservative politicians argue that schools should not expose young students to these ideas. The progressive opposition argues that students who may question their identity need to have proper access to education and resources. Jamie Godfrey, GYJC Student Power Hub member, recounts their joy at recently seeing a reading session at the Charis bookstore, teaching gender identity using transgender characters.

“The tools that you are given to perceive and understand the world, affect your experience of it. And so, like, an input of ignorance is already getting an output of ignorance,” Maansi Manoj, president of the Gender Sexuality Alliance Club (GSA) at Northview High School, said.

GSA tries to create an inclusive environment that is welcoming to all. They are also very involved in legislative action and informing fellow students. Cosper says Northview is pretty accepting because it is so diverse.

“I can see people talk about it in school, but they are just making a lot of jokes about it. It brings attention to this, and there is a bit of stigma,” Godfrey, a student at Milton High School and GYJC Student Power Hub member, said.

Even with the increase in bills limiting access for transgender people, there is a large resistance that has been advocating for trans rights and fighting these legislations. Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh filibustered for three weeks trying to prevent a bill that banned gender-affirming medication in Nebraska. The GYJC has been constantly fighting SB 140 along with other anti-trans bills.

“Narratives are being brought into people’s lives, like, the perception and fabric of reality, that is going to take years and years and years to undo that with education and information,” Manoj said.

Right now, Penado is focusing on informing people that there is still time to get gender-affirming and life-saving healthcare. They are working to mobilize people and connect them to clinics and providers. Even though the GYJC fought against the bill, now that the Georgia Senate passed it, they turn their focus to spreading information and awareness.

“Especially for International Transgender Day of Visibility, we will hold these rallies and host these community building nodes to let the trans youth of Georgia know that we are still here. We are a community and we will continue to fight for them in whatever way possible,” Isabella Rappaccioli, GYJC activist, said.

Looking to the future, a big part of trans activism, according to Penado, is trying to connect transgender people with their support systems in schools, religious communities, biological families, or their found families, within their friend circles, and their other communities.

“I think the future for trans activism is continuing to build community, community care, and the support systems for one another,” Penado said.