By BARBARA SIMPSON
It’s become a controversy that seems to have taken over the whole issue of sports, if not other aspects of our lives and relationships. It isn’t just “boys and girls” anymore, or “men and women.” It seems that we are faced with “gradations” of sex — however one might care to define that.
As the controversy grows, it clearly stems from our interpretation of LGBTQ+ rights — and that seems to vary from state to state and the minds of various politicians and judges.
It has been reported in national media that Republican governors in Indiana and Idaho signed bills into law which ban gender-affirming care for minors. They are the latest states to do that as the legal concept spreads across the country.
The Idaho legislation criminalizes all “gender-affirming” care for youth.
The Indiana bill prohibits transgender youth from accessing medication or surgeries that aid in transition. It also mandates that those currently taking such medications stop by the end of the year.
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb said that those medications and surgeries should “occur as an adult, not as a minor.” Not surprisingly, he faces threats of lawsuits for his actions. The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana and the ACLU of Idaho are proceeding with such legal actions against him.
The suits allege that the ban violates the equal protection guarantee of the Constitution as well as federal laws regarding essential medical services.
Another aspect of the “trans” controversy deals with trans individuals competing in traditional female sports. Kansas now bans transgender athletes from competing in girls’ and women’s sports from kindergarten through college. The bill was pushed through by Republican legislators, overriding at least three vetoes from Democrat Gov. Laura Kelly.
Those who back the ban also support the proposals to end “gender-affirming” care for minors and those proposals which restrict restroom use.
Wyoming is now the nineteenth state to specifically ban men from competing in women’s sports. The law goes into effect this summer and it bans males from the seventh grade and up from competing against females.
The governor, Mark Gordon, let the bill pass without his signature but he let his views be known in a side letter to Chuck Gray, the Wyoming secretary of state. In that letter, the governor described the legislation as “discriminatory” and “overly draconian” and he went on to say that it “pays little attention to fundamental principles of equality.”
Laws passed in other states vary as to their scope, but they generally involve prohibiting hormone therapies, puberty blockers, and transitions surgeries — many of them, even after their parents and physicians give approval. There are also issues in some jurisdictions that would permit such procedures on minors without parental permission. These also face judicial review.
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has signed legislation banning sex-change operations, cross sex hormone treatment, and puberty blockers on minors. He also banned drag performances on public property in the presence of children.
Iowa’s Senate passed legislation that bars students from using bathrooms that don’t correspond to their biological sex.
A bill was passed in Kentucky which prohibits healthcare professionals from attempting to medically transition minors. Violation of the law would involve a full investigation of the actions and, if those actions are confirmed, the revocation of the provider’s medical license.
Overall, there are several hundred Republican backed proposals across the country which push back on LGBTQ+ rights.
The Kansas legislation would prevent transgender individuals from using public restrooms, locker rooms, and other such facilities associated with their gender identities.
It also bars them from changing their name or gender on their driver’s license. As she has done on other issues in this matter, Gov. Kelly is expected to veto that.
The president of the American Principles Project, Terry Schilling, issued a statement supporting such legislation, saying: “Men cannot become women, period. However they identify, males will still retain the athletic advantages that come with their biological sex.”
He continued: “It’s not at all ‘draconian’ or ‘discriminatory’ to limit girls’ athletics to girls; in fact, it’s simple commonsense that polling shows most Americans agree with. It’s unfortunate some of our leaders have been duped into believing such a policy is somehow controversial.”
Cat Poland, a Kansas resident and mother, said: “It’s a scary time to be raising a trans child in Kansas. We may face the very real threat of having to move and it’s heartbreaking.”
Kansas legislators say the ban demonstrates the clout of religious conservatives, reflected in the 2022 platform of the Party — “We believe God created man and woman.”
“It also echoes the beliefs of many Republicans that their constituents don’t like any cultural shift toward acceptance.”
No matter how you look at it, this is a controversy that won’t soon end.
For perspective, here are some excerpts from a March 11 report from Catholic News Agency on Pope Francis’ condemnation of gender ideology, written by Courtney Mares:
Pope Francis has said that gender ideology is “one of the most dangerous ideological colonizations” today.
In an interview with journalist Elisabetta Piqué for the Argentine daily newspaper La Nacion, Pope Francis explained the reasoning behind his strong statement.
“Gender ideology, today, is one of the most dangerous ideological colonizations,” Francis said in the interview published on the evening of March 10.
“Why is it dangerous? Because it blurs differences and the value of men and women,” he added.
“All humanity is the tension of differences. It is to grow through the tension of differences. The question of gender is diluting the differences and making the world the same, all dull, all alike, and that is contrary to the human vocation.”
Pope Francis has frequently used the term “ideological colonization” throughout the 10 years of his pontificate, particularly to describe instances when aid money for developing countries has been tied to contraceptives, abortion, sterilization, and gender ideologies.
In a conversation with Polish bishops in 2016, Pope Francis said: “Today children — children — are taught in school that everyone can choose his or her sex. Why are they teaching this? Because the books are provided by the people and institutions that give you money. These forms of ideological colonization are also supported by influential countries. And this is terrible!”
The Pope said that he talks about the subject of gender ideology “because some people are a bit naive and believe that it is the way to progress.”
When Piqué asked Pope Francis if he knew that in Argentina people are asked to indicate on official forms if they are male, female, or non-binary sex, the Pope said that it reminded him of the “futuristic” novel, Lord of the World, written by Msgr. Robert Hugh Benson in 1907.
He said that the book presents the idea of “a future in which differences are disappearing and everything is the same, everything is uniform, a single leader of the whole world.”
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