Judge rules Texas father has say in 7-year-old son’s gender transition

Judge rules Texas father has say in 7-year-old son’s gender transition
October 27, 2019
A Texas judge has overruled a jury to give joint conservatorship to Jeff Younger, the father of a 7-year-old boy whose mother says he is transgender and is considering transitioning him to female at a young age, according to National Review.
A jury had voted 11 to 1 against awarding sole conservatorship to the father of James Younger, siding with the boy’s mother, Anne Georgulas, who said her child was identifying as a girl and favored starting hormone therapy at age 8, The Texan reported.
But Judge Kim Cooks gave Jeff Younger joint decision-making power over James’ medical decisions, including whether he would transition. The case drew national attention because of a blog by Jeff Younger detailing accusations that Georgulas was forcing his son to dress as a girl and telling him monsters like to eat boys, among other things.
Cooks also put a gag order in place, which means that Jeff Younger can no longer blog about the situation, and ordered the family to begin therapy.
Transgender or abused?
Prior to the gag order, Jeff Younger had stated that his ex-wife enrolled James in school under the name Luna on the advice of an LGBT family therapist, who also suggested puberty suppression and hormone blockers as young as age eight.
Jeff Younger called his ex-wife’s actions “sexual abuse” on his blog and said he was told he needed to “affirm” his son’s identity as female. He even shared a video in which a 3-year-old James said his mother told him he was a girl.
The father also said his son adamantly refused to wear dresses when he visited his father and that transitioning James to a girl would be harmful.
Investigation and legislation
The case is now being investigated by the Texas attorney general as well as child protective services in the state, and several politicians have weighed in about the family’s situation.
“A 7-year-old child doesn’t have the maturity to make profound decisions like this,” Texas Sen. Ted Cruz (R) tweeted. “The state of Texas should protect this child’s right to choose — as an informed, mature person — and not be used as a pawn in a left-wing political agenda.”
As attention on this case intensified, Texas state Rep. Matt Krause (R) said that he will introduce legislation to make puberty blockers illegal for children under age 18, according to The Dallas Morning News. State Rep. Steve Toth (R) also pledged that the first bill of the next session will add “transitioning of a minor” to a list of actions that constitute child abuse.
LGBT activists have called the planned legislation “homophobic” and said it could backfire on Republicans if they are perceived as exploiting the issue to get votes in the next election.
But studies, including one from as recently as 2013, have shown that upwards of 60% of children who think they are transgender will later change their minds. Moreover, starting puberty blockers or hormones could interfere with the process of development and lead to more confusion later in life — which is exactly what James’ dad is trying to avoid.
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