MONTGOMERY— U.S. District Judge Liles Burke has blocked Alabama’s law prohibiting youth gender-affirming treatments from taking effect pending a trial.
Burke’s May 13 order suggests that the Alabama law, Alabama Vulnerable Child Compassion and Protection Act, is likely unconstitutional, stating that the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit have made clear that: “parents have a fundamental right to direct the medical care of their children subject to accepted medical standards; and discrimination based on gender-nonconformity equates to sex discrimination.”
The new law — signed by Gov. Kay Ivey on April 8 — would punish parents and physicians involved in prescribing hormone-altering medications or puberty blockers, and perform gender altering surgeries on people younger than 19 years old. Anyone found guilty could be charged with a Class C felony, punishable of up to 10 years in prison.
“We will continue fighting to protect Alabama’s children from these radical, unproven, life-altering drugs, despite this temporary legal road block. It is especially important while they are at such a vulnerable stage in life,” Ivey said in a statement. “We will continue to uphold our duty to ensure that children are free to grow up into the adults God intended them to be, even with today’s societal pressures and modern culture.”
The suit is brought by four Alabama parents and other health professionals from across the state. The U.S. Department of Justice has also joined the suit as challenging the constitutionality of the law which would deny established medical treatments to youth who are transgender but not to others.
“This ruling means that we will be able to continue providing our child with the medical care he needs and nothing could be more important or more of a relief to our family,” said James Zoe, father of 13-year-old transgender boy in Birmingham. “Alabama is our home and we hope this cruel law will not be allowed to force us from it. We are fighting for our child and will continuing fighting so that he and all transgender youth in Alabama remain able to receive appropriate medical care.”
“We’re grateful the court heard the powerful pleas from the families and providers who would be so harmed by this law. Parents should never be put in the unimaginable position of choosing between denying their transgender children needed healthcare or facing prison,” said Sarah Warbelow, HRC Legal Director.
A 15-year-old from Cullman County, known only as Allison in the lawsuit, had preferred girl toys and clothes since a young child, the lawsuit states, and recently began taking estrogen. Without the medication, Allison would develop male traits.
“With that support and care Allison has become a confident and social teenager who is thriving in school. Without it, I’m terrified she will again become withdrawn, depressed, or even worse. I only want what’s best for my daughter, like any parent. For the state to take away my ability to provide that essential care and support is unthinkable,” her mother said in a statement issued by the organizations representing the plaintiffs.
According to the ACLU, 15 states introduced legislation that would ban — and in some instances criminalize — access to health care for transgender youth in 2021.
The Arkansas legislature passed a similar bill last year — although a federal court blocked the law from going into effect — and 19 other states introduced similar legislation this year. A proposal to ban the transgender services in Georgia failed to advance this year. A Tennessee law signed last year specifically bans the use of transgender hormone treatments to children pre-puberty age.
American Academy of Pediatrics and other health groups have released statements against bills targeting a group that already has a statistically higher rates of depression and suicidal ideation. Around half of transgender youth consider suicide, and a third attempt it, according to AAP.
While surgical interventions aren’t reversible, puberty blockers are, according to medical professional, and puberty can proceed in children.