A new bill introduced in the Utah Legislature seeks to create a study of certain medications that are prescribed to transgender youth in order to help them transition.
The bill, sponsored by Rep. Brad Daw (R-Orem), would create such a study, and direct it to “conduct a review of any available scientific research related to the administration of a gonadotropin releasing hormone agent to a minor for the purpose of facilitating the minor’s desire to present or appear in a manner that is inconsistent with the minor’s sex, and any side effects of that use.”
Daw, told Salt Lake City’s FOX 13 in a text message that in investigating the topic of minors who undergo a gender transition, he became concerned about the short-term and long-term side effects of puberty blockers that are used to assist in a transition.
“I believe that having the state take a closer at this is worth doing,” Daw said.
If approved, the bill would require any information about transition-related medications to be submitted by November to the Utah State Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee.
The doctor in charge of running the study would be required to have a degree in medicine, pharmacology or a related field, according to the bill.
Opponents of the bill worry that the study may be used by opponents of transgender rights to propose more sweeping bills — similar to those introduced in other states this year — to restrict minors’ ability to access to hormones or puberty blockers by punishing prescribers.
“It’s a much better bill in terms of not trying to restrict people’s access,” Candice Metzler, the director of Transgender Education Advocates of Utah, told FOX 13 when comparing it to legislation in other states.
But Metzler said her group still does not support the bill, arguing that there is already government-funded and peer-reviewed research on the subject that is easy enough for lawmakers to access if they so wish.
She also objects to language in the bill referring to a minor’s biological sex.
“Sex is not what people identify with,” said Metzler. “I just think part of the problem is the language further complicates things and it does leave questions about what the purpose of the study is.”
Sawyer Hemsley, co-founder and chief branding officer of Crumbl Cookies, recently came out as gay after an influencer's viral TikTok speculated about his sexuality.
Hemsley, who launched the billion-dollar cookie chain in 2017 with his cousin Jason McGowan while a student at Utah State, has become a prominent face of the brand on TikTok.
Hemsley addressed the speculation in an Instagram post, writing, "here have been people online trying to define me, twist things, and share conversations that feel harmful. Instead of letting others write my story, I want to share it in my own words. The truth is, over the past few years I've come to understand and accept that I'm gay."
Speaking from the podium at the World Pride Rally and March for Freedom in June, Tyler Hack joined some of the nation's most prominent LGBTQ activist voices in raising the call to protect transgender kids.
The 20-year-old trans founder and executive director of the Christopher Street Project was also among the youngest leaders to rally the crowd at the Lincoln Memorial that day, and one with a clear stake in the trans rights movement.
Under attack from right-wing policymakers who make sport of chasing people into locker rooms and bathrooms, trans youth are in peril throughout the U.S. And Trump administration executive orders restricting access to health care, public spaces, and government-issued IDs that match their name and gender identity, have forced an already marginalized community into a fight for their right to exist.
A new report published by the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law finds that an estimated 2.8 million Americans aged 13 or older identify as transgender.
According to NBC News, that figure represents about 1% of the U.S. population within that age group. The breakdown is nearly even: 34.2% identify as transgender men, 32.7% as transgender women, and 33.1% as nonbinary.
One statistic drew particular attention on social media: younger Americans are far more likely to identify as transgender than older generations. About 3.3% of those ages 13-17 identify as transgender, compared to just 0.3% of those 65 and older.
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