PIVOT denounces Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton for Using the Lives of Transgender Children and their Families as Political Pawns
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On Tuesday February 22, Texas Governor Greg Abbott directed the state agencies of Family and Protective Services, Health and Human Services Commission, Texas Medical Board, and the Texas Education Agency to conduct “prompt and thorough” investigations into the use of gender-affirming care for transgender children, a move that follow Ken Paxton’s (the Texas state attorney general) opinion that such treatments are a form of child abuse. This significantly raises the risk that these parents will go to jail and the children will be separated from their parents.
Under Abbott’s order, all transgender children will be investigated and their parents will be prosecuted as child abusers. Abbott has also instructed all teachers, doctors, and caregivers to report any transgender children they see. Under the “duty to report” in Texas, these professionals have one of two choices: to either report these children to Family and Protective Services or risk losing their job.
PIVOT condemns Governor Abbott and A.G. Paxton for abusing their power; their personal opinions are not the law and have no place in creating harmful policies that will result in the death of transgender kids and severely harm families. Their harmful actions spread fear and misinformation about a topic that is very private, personal, and individualized. Medical decisions should be left between doctors and their patients, full stop.
These attacks on gender affirming care for trans youth have been condemned by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Medical Association, and are out of line with the medical recommendations of the American Medical Association, the Endocrine Society and Pediatric Endocrine Society, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Psychological Association, and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.
We strongly denounce both the Governor and A.G. for putting the lives of transgender children and their families at risk, and for threatening and forcing professionals to report these families. This policy is divisive and intended to terrorize these families and their community. PIVOT calls out these politicians for playing fast and loose with extremely harmful directives and missives to score political points for their upcoming elections. This is a dangerous new step in an already overabundant basket of anti-LGBTQ+ policies in Texas that places non-expert lawmakers’ decisions above evidence-based medicine, protection and privacy for the families affected by this order, and the healthcare that has been proven to save and improve the lives of these children.
PIVOT urges our members and partners to organize and advocate for the order to be rolled back immediately, and for county prosecutors to refuse to try cases brought on by this hateful and discriminatory order.
Co-Signed by:
For Help:
Trevor Project Hotline: 866-488-7386
Lambda Legal Help Desk for Texas: 214-219-8585
Lambda Legal Website: https://www.lambdalegal.org/helpdesk