RELEASE: Kid Castrate Case Update: Parent & National Group Jump In
Austin, TX – Today, Texas Values filed a legal amicus brief with the Texas Supreme Court in support of the State of Texas’s position to uphold Senate Bill 14, the Gender Transition Ban for Minors legislation enacted by the Texas Legislature during the 2023 legislative session. Family Policy Alliance joined Texas Values’ legal brief in support of this law.
Chloe Cole, Detransitioner & Activist Against Child Gender Modification stated:
“The State of Texas has been a leader on protecting children from gender ideology and its Supreme Court has a responsibility to protect our most vulnerable youth. My life has been turned upside down because my home state failed to protect my family and I.”
Jonathan Covey, Policy Director, Texas Values stated:
“SB 14 equally protects all children from activists who peddle radical, experimental kid-castration procedures. We are filing to make the truth clear: male and female bodies are unchangeable and denying that fact ends up hurting vulnerable children. Young people deserve better, and we will not allow this insanity to be practiced in our state.”
Texas Values’ brief argues that male and female bodies are unchangeable, and that SB 14 protects children equally by prohibiting harmful gender transition interventions for both sexes. The brief also addresses parental rights as fundamental liberty interests that, while limited in certain rare instances, such as those covered by S.B. 14, deserve to be protected with the highest standard of judicial scrutiny.
The case, State of Texas v. Loe et al., is currently before the Texas Supreme Court and is scheduled to have a hearing on Tuesday, January 30, 2024 in Austin to decide the law’s constitutionality. In July 2023, several families with LGBT children, as well as several medical providers and LGBT advocacy organizations, all filed suit to block S.B. 14 from becoming law. The trial court ruled against the law, but after the State of Texas appealed, the Texas Supreme Court allowed S.B. 14 to go into effect while legal proceedings were pending. The January 30th hearing will consider the constitutional merits of the law.
Texas Values Legal and Policy team members strongly supported SB 14 in the Texas Legislature, assisting in the drafting of the bill, as well as testifying at both the Texas House and Texas Senate public hearings and serving as an expert resource to legislative authors.
You can read Texas Values’ legal amicus brief here.
Members of the Texas Values policy team are available for comment. Contact Ashley at [email protected] or 737-314-2450 to schedule an interview.
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About Texas Values
Texas Values is the largest statewide nonprofit organization dedicated to standing for faith, family, and freedom in Texas. More information is available at txvalues.org.