The Texas Supreme Court has green-lit a controversial law that bans gender-affirming care for transgender minors, according to The Guardian. This ruling allows the restrictive measure to take immediate effect, marking Texas as the largest state to enact such prohibitive legislation.
In response to the high court's decision, legal advocates including the American Civil Liberties Union have decried the law as "cruel," and worry that transgender youth will face increased fear and stigma with the school year approaching. "Transgender youth and their families are forced to confront the start of the school year fearful of what awaits them. But let us be clear: the fight is far from over," the advocacy groups said in a joint statement obtained by The Guardian.
Previously, a state district judge had ruled that Senate Bill 14, which prevents transgender minors from accessing puberty blockers, hormone therapies, and other gender-affirming care, was unconstitutional. The judge's ruling argued it infringed upon the rights of transgender children and their families to obtain needed medical care and restricted doctors' abilities to follow medical guidelines.
The state officials, who filed an immediate appeal to the Texas Supreme Court, were granted a lift of the temporary injunction that allowed the law to come into force. Without giving an explanation for their order, the all-Republican court did not touch on the law's constitutionality, which was highlighted by a lower court. "Texas kids are safer today because of the supreme court ruling," Jonathan Covey, policy director of Texas Values, a conservative group that supported the law, told The Guardian.
The plaintiffs of the lawsuit, which includes five Texas families with transgender children, maintain that the law violates parental rights and discriminates against healthcare providers. "It deprives transgender youth of equal rights and equal protection, it deprives the doctors of their vested property interests in their medical license without due course of law," Kennon Wooten, an attorney representing the plaintiffs, expressed during the court hearing as reported by KENS 5.
The Supreme Court is expected to conduct a full hearing, though a date has not yet been determined. Meanwhile, debate continues as trans rights activists and ally organizations vouch to continue their legal battle against legislation they believe unfairly targets transgender minors across Texas.
