Two pairs of parents are anonymously suing a school district over its policy to allow students to use their preferred names and pronouns.
On 24 November, the Kettle Moraine School District (KMSD) in Wisconsin had a 17-page lawsuit filed against it in the Waukesha County Circuit Court.
Acting on behalf of the angered parents, the anti-LGBTQ+ organisation Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) and conservative law firm Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty (WILL) filed the complaint.
It claimed their constitutional rights have been violated by allowing children to be called by their chosen names and pronouns, regardless of parental approval.
The unnamed plaintiffs are seeking a declaration that KMSD violated their rights, as well as demanding that it be banned from referring “to students using a name or pronouns at odds with their biological sex” without the consent of parents.
“Nominal damages” have also been requested over the “violation of their constitutional rights as parents,” as well as legal fees.
According to the lawsuit, one of the plaintiff’s children “began to experience significant anxiety and depression, and also began questioning” their gender identity in December 2020.
The 12-year-old was then taken out of school to get mental health support which reportedly helped the child become more confident in their gender.
They then wished to be called a “new male name” with corresponding pronouns, which led to their parents contacting the school ordering them to disregard this.
When the headteacher responded explaining the policy of referring to children by their chosen name and pronouns, the student was withdrawn from the institution.
After being at home for “the next few weeks,” their “demeanor quickly began to change” which allegedly resulted in them changing their mind about transitioning.
They now go to a new school and use their birth name and female pronouns.
The lawsuit states: “She expressed to her mother that ‘affirmative care really messed me up,’ explaining that the rush to affirm that she was really a boy added to her confusion and fueled anger towards her mother, but after taking more time to process her feelings, she realized her mother had been right to slow down the decision to transition.”
A recent study suggested that transgender and non-binary people face discrimination in all aspects of their day-to-day life in the UK.
Published on 29 September, TransActual UK’s ‘Trans lives survey 2021: Enduring the UK’s hostile environment’ report aims to highlight the reality of living as a trans and/or non-binary person in the UK.
It was found that a shocking 98% of transgender people do not think NHS transition-related care is completely adequate.
In addition, almost half (45%) feel their GP does not have a good understanding of their needs as a trans person, a figure that rises to 55% for non-binary people.
This is something that was found to have a significant impact on respondents, with 57% of trans people saying they had avoided their GP when unwell due to a lack of understanding from them, as well as fear of discrimination.
You can read more from the study by clicking here.
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