PROTECT CHILDREN AND THE SANCTITY OF CHILDHOOD
After a very long floor debate into the wee hours of Friday morning, the House Democrat majority passed HF 146 which will make Minnesota a “sanctuary state” for gender transitions for minors. The “gender affirming care” referred to in this bill includes puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and genital and breast removal. The bill also allows for children from other states to travel to Minnesota to receive these treatments, with or without parental consent.
The brain is an incredibly complex organ and is not fully developed until approximately age twenty-five. Children, teens, and young adults in this age group do not have a fully developed prefrontal cortex. That’s a scientific fact. This is the area of the brain that performs reasoning, planning, judgement, and impulse control. This developmentally immature brain greatly impacts young people’s decision-making processes, along with their perceptions of themselves and the world.
We must protect children and the sanctity of childhood.
Minnesota has long recognized the sanctity of childhood by acknowledging that minors do not have fully developed brains – they do not have the capability for making adult level decisions, especially those that will have longterm impact on their lives. That’s why we have laws in our state to protect children by not allowing minors to do certain things like get married, own a gun, drink alcohol, or smoke tobacco products. Even the marijuana bill that’s making its way through the House acknowledges the permanent damages that marijuana can have on the young developing brain and makes its use illegal for those under the age of twenty-one.
Minnesota has laws that restrict minors from getting permanent body art like tattoos or body piercings. Certain types of body art cannot be obtained by a minor even WITH parental permission, such as nipple or genital piercings or splitting the tongue.
So while it’s against the law in Minnesota for minors to have nipple or genital piercings, those same minors will be able to make the decision to mutilate their genitals or breasts permanently by having them cut off. Does that even make sense? Sadly, this decision will be based upon the perceptions of an underdeveloped juvenile brain, and in the midst of the well known fact that 80 to 90 percent of children with gender dysphoria return to identifying with their biological sex by the age of eighteen. To top it all off, Democrats want to make Minnesota a “sanctuary state” so children from other states can come here to have their breasts and genitals cut off too.
There have been a number of prominent stories in the news recently where de-transitioning young adults in their mid to upper 20s are now suing doctors and hospitals for encouraging medical sex change mutilation when they were young teenagers instead of properly treating their mental health issues. Lawsuits like these have already been occurring in Europe for quite some time
Will Minnesota be setting itself up for future lawsuits by creating this sanctuary state status where children from other states, with or without parental permission, can come here to be medically transitioned? It is highly likely that this will happen if this bill passes.
So what is the answer? It certainly is not to sexually mutilate minors or create a sanctuary state to do so. We should have extreme empathy for young people who are experiencing gender dysphoria. We should pass legislation funding emergency mental health therapy to support Minnesota children who are experiencing gender dysphoria and struggling with issues like severe anxiety, depression, eating disorders, or suicidal thoughts. Then, once the child reaches adulthood, he or she can determine if the struggle with gender dysphoria continues and make that very ADULT decision on whether to seek serious and permanent sex change transition treatments.
If an eleven-year-old says he’s mature enough to buy a gun, should we let him? Of course not. That child has a juvenile, immature brain – just like those children experiencing gender dysphoria. We must protect children and the sanctity of childhood.
Please share this message. This legislation can still be stopped in the Senate if we can get DFL senators to vote against it.
