A South Carolina state lawmaker proposed a bill that would make it illegal for children to undergo gender reassignment surgery until they become adults.
Republican state Rep. Stewart Jones cited the case of James Younger as his motivation for pursuing the legislation. Younger, a 7-year-old boy from Texas, told his mother that he wanted to transition to a girl. The mother encouraged the decision and demanded that Younger’s father refer to the child as “Luna.”
Younger’s father was denied custody of his son when he tried to block James from transitioning. The judge has since reversed and given the father, Jeffrey Younger, joint managing conservatorship, meaning he must agree to any medical treatments his son receives.
Following weeks of controversy, James Younger returned to school, where he opted to go by his given name and identify as a boy.
Jones claimed that gender reassignment has been used as a weapon and must be outlawed to protect children, saying, “It’s almost been weaponized, and this is to protect children.”
He argued that his bill will protect children “from being pressured or bullied in any kind of circumstance to have their gender reassigned.”
Jones explained that he does not care if an adult makes the decision to transition, but he wanted to ensure that children are protected from making decisions that could have lasting effects on their bodies.
“For a child, it’s a whole different matter. Somebody under 18, they can’t buy cigarettes and alcohol, and so they shouldn’t be able to have a sex change,” Jones said.
Some transgender activists have expressed their concern over the legislation, including Chase Glenn, the executive director of the gay rights group Alliance for Full Acceptance.
“This is obviously a very troubling bill. This is an incredibly vulnerable population that we’re talking about, with an already high suicide rate,” Glenn noted. “This could have disastrous implications.”
Scott Leibowitz, associate professor of psychiatry at the Ohio State University College of Medicine, called the proposed legislation “archaic.”
“The absence of access to beneficial, evidence-based care, which does exist, is very harmful and quite frankly puts youth in the middle of political battles when lives are at stake,” Leibowitz told Reuters.
Three other states, Alaska, Illinois, and Texas, have introduced legislation that would similarly ban gender reassignments under the age of 18.
