BROADview in Brief
The ayes have it...
January 10th came and went, and with it went Governor Mike DeWine’s veto of Ohio HB 68 banning youth gender medicalization. The override vote fell along party lines: Republicans 65 in favor, Democrats 28 opposed. There had been some question about whether Ohio Republicans might lose a vote or two at the end, but Republicans, in general, seem to only be solidifying their stance on this issue. At this point, there is no doubt that the Ohio Senate will also have a two-thirds majority to overturn the veto on January 24, at which point the bill will become law without the governor’s signature. DeWine, in the meantime, had managed to infuriate both supporters and opponents of HB 68 with his proposed administrative regulations—quite the talent!
Meanwhile, in the Very Slight Signs of Political Movement Department, 12 New Hampshire House Democrats crossed the aisle last week to vote for HB 619, which would ban sex-change surgery on minors in that state. The bill now moves to the New Hampshire Senate for deliberation. One of the Democrats who voted in favor of the bill, Representative Jonah Wheeler, was threatened by colleagues to such an extent that State House security was called in. When political partisans behave this way, I always wonder whether it has anything at all to do with the issue at stake. My guess is that being unable to enforce strict party discipline on a culture war issue is causing 90% of the rage. Thou shalt not vote with the opposing party.
Across the rest of the states…
South Carolina is currently the only southern state that does not ban the gender medicalization of minors, but that may change early in 2024 as legislators work quickly in the House to bring forward HB 4264, which would criminalize gender reassignment procedures on South Carolinians who are under 18.
In a classic “hold my beer” moment, though, West Virginia legislators are now seeking to ban gender medicalization until patients are 21. Keep up, people!
The Texas Children’s Hospital surgeon who was interviewed by Chris Rufo back in May for his piece on the ongoing medical and surgical interventions on minors at that institution has come forward. He has been threatened with prosecution by federal prosecutors for potentially leaking confidential patient information and has now started a crowdfund for his legal costs. According to The Daily Mail, Eithan Haim “insists he did not break any rules. Though he released private medical files that detailed trans medical procedures on children as young as 12, he says the identities of patients had been redacted.”
Alabama may now go forth with its felony ban on youth gender medicine, per a federal court ruling lifting the injunction on its enforcement.
In Massachusetts, the Amherst-Pelham Regional School District is looking for a new superintendent, a new assistant superintendent, and several new school committee members after a federal complaint and student newspaper reporting on guidance counselors misgendering and mistreating trans-identified students at the district’s middle school (note the description of Title IX as “the federal statute banning discrimination on the basis of gender”).
In a snapshot of what goes on in many classrooms across the country these days, 4th and 5th graders in Burien, Washington, just outside of Seattle, got an equity lesson on Monday to help them understand that their teacher, Miss Angela, is becoming Mr. Angel and will now use he/him pronouns. I particularly appreciated that the local paper included a reading of the book to be used in class, It Feels Good to Be Yourself: A Book About Gender Identity. What do you think of the story? [Edit: a local subscriber let me know this took place in Normandy Park, just outside of Burien]
FAIR in Medicine is circulating its letter to the American Psychiatric Association, critiquing its new publication on gender-affirming care. Maybe the APA doesn’t realize that the American Academy of Pediatrics has paused its own publication on the subject?
Canada continues to hop to the gender jam, as Hockey Canada announced that three Ontario teams have signed onto their new inclusive dressing room policy which requires adult supervision and a base layer of clothing in open changing areas. If Canadian male youth sports teams are anything like American male youth teams, this policy is probably very wise, even without any transgender players.
What Canadian legislators are hearing and from whom is also in the gender news, as researcher Dr. Greta Bauer swore that it’s not as easy to start puberty blockers in Canada as it is in the US, despite New Brunswick premier Blaine Higgs’ claims that 60% of Canadian children are put on blockers at their first visit. Bauer said that “her study, published in 2021, specifies that 60 percent of young patients were prescribed medication at their first hormone-specialist appointment. To get that appointment, youth had to see an average of 2.7 other health-care professionals, and the average wait time for that first appointment was 269 days from the date of referral.”
Elsewhere:
In Scotland, the Scottish National Party (SNP) continued to run off the rails as it proposed new legislation that could put parents and other carers who refuse to socially or medically transition minor children in jail for seven years. Scotland and West Virginia are perhaps the yin and the yang of the 21st century gender battles…
Many congratulations to social worker Rachel Meade who won her lawsuit against her employer and professional regulating body in the UK this past week. At some point UK employers will start to realize they cannot harass people for their gender critical beliefs at work.
England continues to be a mishmash of awareness around gender controversies, and the National Health Service now asks patients to choose from 12 genders, 10 sexual orientations, and 159 religions on its intake forms. I share this story because you could honestly be hit with this kind of decision-making process at any medical facility around the globe these days, so you might want to do some navel-gazing in preparation for the next time you break a toe. I’m still mulling over the Goddess vs Druid option…
In general international news, there’s continuing drama about the WHO transgender health guidelines development committee as it turns out that more than half of the proposed members have no medical background at all. Surprise!
Have an excellent long MLK weekend if you’re in the United States! Please share your thoughts below and through this form, and enjoy your January wherever you are.
Thank you, as always, for the research assistance of Alejandra Q!
Kate, you are the Goddess *and* the Druid of gender news. Thank you, as always, for keeping us so well informed.
Another great read, Lisa! It seems the tide may be turning.... slowly but surely. I still shudder at the fact that people believe it's ok to medically and chemically change children. They are only creating a huge mental issue down the road, as well creating permanent medical patients. Out of CHILDREN! So, I guess we really should follow the money! How sad. Making money off the innocent lives of our children. Shame on them! And that book, "It Feels Good to be Yourself"?? Really? You have got to be kidding me. My grandson is five years old. He could care less about gender. These children are in the stage of make believe and role playing. It's a part of growing up. Why are we planting "gender" seeds into their heads? Seriously. In my book, it's child abuse. Plain and simple. To permanently alter a child's body is cruel and abusive. No two ways about it. That book needs to be banned. But that's a different battle. I will never understand why we're picking on children. Come on adults! Pick on someone your own size!! PLEASE LEAVE OUR CHILDREN ALONE TO GROW UP!