The Tennessee state Senate on Thursday passed a bill that would make it a felony for adults to assist minors in obtaining gender transition procedures without parental consent. The bill, sponsored by Republican State Sen. Janice Bowling, passed with a 25-4 vote and is now headed for the House.
The bill has already seen its share of backlash from proponents of using “gender-affirming care” on children despite studies illustrating the risks of subjecting children to puberty blockers, hormones, and surgical treatments.
Tennessee’s bill is the latest in a series of legislation passed in red states aimed at preventing people and institutions from allowing children to undergo questionable treatment methods as the debate over “gender-affirming care” continues.
The proposed legislation, known as SB 2782, specifically targets any adult to “recruits, harbors, or transports an unemancipated minor” for the purpose of going through “gender-transition” procedures. Those convicted could face between three and 15 years in prison and fines of up to $10,000.
State Sen. Janice Bowling, a Republican, sponsored SB 2782, which would penalize any “adult who recruits, harbors, or transports an unemancipated minor” in Tennessee “for the purpose of receiving a prohibited medical procedure that is for the purpose of enabling the minor to identify with, or live as, a purported identity inconsistent with the minor’s sex or treating purported discomfort or distress from a discordance between the minor’s sex and asserted identity, regardless of where the medical procedure is to be procured,” and make it classified as a felony.
Adults who break the law could face prison time of three to 15 years and fines of up to $10,000 under the Class C felony that the bill allots. The bill also “authorizes a person who violates this amendment to be held liable in a civil action for such violation.”
While Republican lawmakers support the measure, the bill has been met with resistance from some on the left.
One speaker in a separate House subcommittee meeting testified and said the bill was not necessary. She said she was a mother to a transgender son in Williamson County.
“HB 2310 is not necessary. There are already laws and multiple hoops to jump through that require parental consent. This body thinks a lot about parental rights, and parents often depend on a community of folks to raise their families,” she said. “This bill could strip them of those rights ... Jesus would be flipping the tables if he were here today. When is enough cruelty enough?”
Other Democratic lawmakers have also pushed back against the proposal. State Sen. Jeff Yarbro argued that the state has “had two bills in two days regulate the types of conversations people can have with each other” and insisted that the legislature “shouldn’t be trying to violate constitutional rights.”
This development comes as other states like Idaho, Indiana, Ohio, and others have adopted legislation aimed at protecting minors experiencing gender dysphoria from the harmful and irreversible effects of puberty blockers, hormones, and surgical treatments.
Other states have enacted laws barring government-run schools from pushing transgender ideology on children while keeping parents in the dark if their children exhibit symptoms of gender dysphoria.
Tennessee’s House is dominated by Republicans, which means the measure will likely pass. The implications of this new legislation are profound as it represents an escalation against those who would subject children to treatments that have life-altering effects. Several studies have already shown that using these treatments on children does not benefit them; instead, they only worsen their mental health issues. This legislation is another step toward promoting alternative treatment methods for kids who are confused about their gender.
See also:
The Arguments Supporting 'Gender-Affirming Care' Have Never Been 'Based on the Science'
