SB 140 Uses Vulnerable Children as Political Chips

It’s taken me a moment to process my feelings after this week’s Public Health Committee hearing, and the House floor debate and passage of Senate Bill 140. The committee and full House voted along party lines to advance SB 140, which has now been transmitted to the Senate for a vote on the House amendment.
SB 140 would make it illegal to perform so-called “experimental” gender-affirming therapies and procedures on minors, including gender-affirming surgeries and Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT.)
I expected the bill to pass, but that didn’t make watching it happen any less horrifying. The events laid bare the hypocrisy that exists within these hallowed halls; the same body that passes many bills with good intentions is not above passing deeply harmful policy for political purposes.
On the floor of the House, we watched Democrats like Representatives Teri Anulewicz and Karla Drenner give gut wrenching speeches about the negative effects SB 140 will have on our children. Rep. Drenner–the first elected LGBTQ+ member of the General Assembly–pleaded with LGBTQ+ youths in our state to hold onto hope. I spoke on my experience as a parent, research that demonstrates the high risks of suicide and mental illness in the trans community, and how bills like these exacerbate these risk factors. Meanwhile, Republicans gave speeches rife with disinformation and unsubstantiated claims about the trans community.

Rep. Draper opposing SB 140 from the House Floor

Policies like those in SB 140 have the effect of alienating, stigmatizing, and harming trans children. We are told by the other side that SB 140 was written with the intent to protect our children, but this is blatantly false. The hypocrisy demonstrated is actually stunning. For years, the General Assembly has passed many bills codifying the rights of parents to make decisions for the best interests of their children. This bill completely takes medical decisions and autonomy away from parents and their children, as well as the trained medical professionals they see.
Current research accepted by the medical community shows that gender-affirming care– including surgery and hormone replacement therapies–have positive impacts on transgender children. In fact, studies demonstrate that all children have better overall mental and physical health when they are accepted and validated by their parents or guardians, and for trans children that includes access to gender-affirming care.
This leads to my next serious concern about SB 140: the absolute lack of supporting evidence, data, research, or facts used in writing this bill. Many of its claims are patently false, and the entire thesis of SB 140 goes against current research, data, and standards of care adopted by the medical community. The American Academy of Pediatrics recently released a statement, “Ensuring Comprehensive Care and Support for Transgender and Gender-Diverse Children and Adolescents,” expressing concern for healthcare access disparities among LGBTQ+ youths, and urging physicians to take a gender-affirming, non-judgmental approach when working with transgender children.
Watching a Senator stand before a House Committee with no real facts or data to support his claims was chilling. Are we okay knowing that any legislation can pass through this legislature, regardless of truth or prevailing scientific evidence, as long as it is championed by the majority party?
I hear republicans are eager to pass this bill because this issue polls high- over 80%- with their voters. I’ve even heard this bill referred to as “red meat” for the base. How about some red meat that isn’t in the form of vulnerable children? There is no decency in what they are aiming to accomplish here. If what they really wanted to do was protect children, there are plenty of recommendations from the medical community regarding how to best care for transgender children to choose from.
It’s simply wrong for the General Assembly to pass laws superseding and contradicting the widely accepted standards of care of the medical community. We do not–and should not–sit here in the Gold Dome and determine how oncologists should treat cancer patients or how dentists ought to perform tooth extractions. In the same way, we cannot pass a bill that dictates to pediatricians and endocrinologists what kind of medical care they can provide for their patients.
Rates of mental illness and suicide among gender-diverse youths are higher than nearly any other group of children. LGBTQ+ youth are over four times more likely to commit suicide than their non-LGBTQ+ counterparts. Many studies show that over half of all transgender children have considered committing suicide in their lifetime, while others say that number is closer to 80 percent. According to the Trevor Project, 54,000 LGBTQ+ youth in Georgia seriously consider suicide annually, and more than 1.8 million LGBTQ+ youth nationally. While many of the effects of Hormone Replacement Therapy will in fact reverse after stopping use, we do know of course that suicide is a truly irreversible tragedy.
LGBTQ+ children–and in particular trans and gender-diverse children–are not born more prone to suicide than others, nor are they born inherently more likely to develop serious mental illness as they grow up. Trans children are at higher risk for suicide and mental illness because of bills like SB 140, that take away their agency and ability to live freely and authentically. Gender-nonconforming children die every year because of policies that force them to live in shame and self-hatred. No child should ever be put through what SB 140 aims to put them through.
Trans joy and euphoria are possible, and the best way to achieve that is through non-judgemental, gender affirming care.
There were many tears after the hearing, and again after the passage in the House. The fear that SB 140 has created is palpable. Those who were present fear for their lives, the lives of their friends, and the lives of their children. My heart goes out to every single person who will be affected by this legislation if passed, and I am deeply grateful to every constituent, parent, and advocate who came to tell their stories to the committee. It was incredibly powerful to see the number of people who showed up to take part in their democracy and to fight for their community. Please know that despite the outcome, your efforts did make a difference. You are heard, you are loved, and I will never stop fighting for you.
My Democratic colleagues and I are doing everything we can to prevent SB 140 from becoming law, and I know our friends in the Senate are as well. I continue to implore my Republican colleagues to change their positions and stop the passage of SB 140.
In service,