Following the passage of laws overriding out-of-state parental rights, a lobbying and think tank organization issued a travel warning for California and Minnesota.
In light of recent legislation in California and Minnesota that would allow state family courts to temporarily exercise emergency jurisdiction over a minor entering the state to obtain sex-change drugs or surgical procedures, regardless of whether the minor is traveling from another state, the American Principles Project (APP) is warning parents across the country that their parental rights may be revoked.
“Parents will stop at nothing to keep their kids safe. Any parent’s worst nightmare would be to lose their child and be helpless to prevent any harm from happening to them. But in today’s world, families going to places like California or Minnesota run the possibility of having their children taken away by a business that seeks to mutilate and sterilize their bodies, according to APP President Terry Schilling. To think that such anti-family policies have become prevalent in the United States is both alarming and upsetting.
“Despite the fact that lawmakers around the nation have made considerable progress in opposing this agenda, we must not lose sight of the reality of the situation. Right now, parents who bring their kids to either of these states face a very real possibility of having their families torn apart, Schilling continued.
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California lawmakers enacted Senate Bill 107 in September, designating the state as a safe haven for families with transgender children. Democratic state senator Scott Wiener introduced the legislation earlier this year.
In a statement, Wiener stated that California “must stand with LGBTQ kids and their families, especially when they are being attacked across the country.” “Parents should never be taken away from their children or charged with a crime for just letting them be who they are.”
Similar legislation that would make Minnesota a “trans refuge” for children seeking transgender medical procedures but who might be refused “gender-affirming care” in other jurisdictions was enacted by Minnesota lawmakers in April.
The Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party representative Leigh Finke introduced HF 146, which was approved by the Minnesota House on a party-line vote of 68–62. The first transgender lawmaker in the state is Finke. On Friday, April 21, the Minnesota Senate approved the bill by a vote of 34 to 30.
California is considering AB-957, additional legislation that would oblige family courts to “strongly consider that affirming the minor’s gender identity is in the best interest of the child if a nonconsenting parent objects to a name and gender marker change to affirm conform to the minor’s gender identity.”
If a nonconsenting parent opposes to a name and gender marker change to affirm adhere to the minor’s gender identity, this measure would force the court to seriously consider whether affirming the minor’s gender identity is in the best interest of the child.
Schilling urges parents to educate themselves and organize themselves, stating that “the left is aiming to enact similar policies at the federal level and in all 50 states.”
“The left wants to implement comparable laws at the national level and in each of the 50 states. The only way to stop them, according to Schilling, is to make sure that more Americans are aware of their strategies and to defeat them in elections. The majority of voters, which is excellent news, oppose the left’s anti-family agenda, but parents still need to be politically active to prevent anti-family forces from finally winning.
Schillings mentioned that lawmakers are battling for parental rights at the federal and state levels.
While there is still work to be done, Schilling said it was encouraging to see some lawmakers trying to push back on behalf of parents.
The Parents Bill of Rights, which among other things mandated that schools notify parents of their policies on transgender students, was passed by Congress’s Republican-majority in March.
The law would mandate that schools notify parents if they permit transgender pupils to participate in sports that don’t correspond to their gender at birth. Additionally, it would mandate that schools inform parents if transgender children are permitted to use toilets that don’t match their gender identity.
The use of pronouns in schools was legalized last week after Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed legislation prohibiting the treatment of children who identify as transgender.
One of the laws DeSantis signed, SB 254, forbids anybody under the age of 18 from having sex-reassignment surgery or from using prescription-only cross-sex hormones to address gender dysphoria. A state regulation prohibiting Medicaid from compensating patients of all ages who have the operations would also be made permanent by the law.
“This will make child mutilation illegal forever. Prior to signing SB 254, he stated that it would make experimental puberty blockers and surgical procedures against minors. “Any adults undergoing these treatments must also be made aware of the procedures’ risks and their irreversible nature. The courts will have interim jurisdiction to step in and suspend procedures involving out-of-state children as a result.
