People holding transgender flags.Photo: Getty
One week after Texas Gov. Greg Abbottsent a letterdirecting the state’s Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) to “conduct a prompt and thorough investigation of any reported instances” of gender reassignment surgery in minors —which he called “abusive”— the state has officially begun such investigations, according to a new lawsuit.
In thesuit, filed Tuesday, the parents of minor “Mary Doe,” “John Doe” and “Jane Doe,” sued Abbott and Texas DFPS Commissioner Jaime Masters, accusing them of having “trampled on the Constitutional rights of transgender children, their parents and professionals who provide vital care to transgender children.”
The plaintiffs filed against Abbott, 64, and Masters “for Temporary Restraining Order, Temporary Injunction, Permanent Injunction and Request for Declaratory Relief,” according to the complaint. (Reps for Abbott’s office did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.)
“The Defendants have, without Constitutional or statutory authority,acted to create a new definition of ‘child abuse’that singles out a subset of loving parents for scrutiny, investigation and potential family separation,” the complaint states. “Their actions caused terror and anxiety among transgender youth and their families across the Lone Star State and singled out transgender youth and their families for discrimination and harassment.”
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Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.Lynda M. Gonzalez-Pool/Getty
“Jane Doe,” who works for the DFPS, was placed on administrative leave last week and investigated Friday regarding “Mary,” the 16-year-old child whom she shares with “John.”
“Plaintiff Mary Doe is transgender, has been diagnosed with gender dysphoria, a serious medical condition, and is currently receiving medically necessary care for the treatment of her gender dysphoria,” the complaint says.
The family “refused” to turn over “Mary”’s medical records when a DFPS investigator came to their home on Friday, per thecomplaint.
Inthe letter, dated Feb. 22, Abbott wrote, “It is already against the law to subject Texas children to a wide variety of elective procedures for gender transitioning, including reassignment surgeries that can cause sterilization, mastectomies, removals of otherwise healthy body parts, and administration of puberty-blocking drugs or supraphysiologic doses of testosterone or estrogen.”
“Texas law imposes reporting requirements upon all licensed professionals who have direct contact with children who may be subject to such abuse, including doctors, nurses, and teachers, and provides criminal penalties for failure to report such child abuse,” he continued.
Woman covered with transgender flag at protest.Getty
“There are similar reporting requirements and criminal penalties for members of the general public,” Abbott added in the letter.
Trans and human rights groups decried Abbott’s stance, saying that it will spread fear and misinformation.
Major medical organizations including theAmerican Academy of Pediatrics, theAmerican Medical Associationand theAmerican Psychological Associationhave said that gender-affirming medical care is medically necessary for transgender kids.
The White House condemned Abbott’s instructionsin a statement to theDallas Morning Newson Feb. 23.
“Conservative officials in Texas and other states across the country should stop inserting themselves into health care decisions that create needless tension between pediatricians and their patients,” Karine Jean-Pierre, the deputy principal press secretary for the White House, told the outlet. “No parent should face the agony of a politician standing in the way of accessing life-saving care for their child.”
source: people.com
