The U.S. Department of Education hosted a listening session with detransitioners and parents’ rights advocates on “Detrans Awareness Day,” while officials also discussed strategies to protect children from the “dangers and harms” of gender ideology.
Detransitioners are defined by the department as “young men and women who previously identified as ‘transgender’ but have reversed their social and medical ‘gender transitions.’”
When reached for comment, the Department of Education referred The Center Square to its news release.
Six detransitioners; mental health, medical and education professionals; as well as parents’ rights advocates met with the department for its Detrans Awareness Day session.
“Attendees shared their experiences regarding gender ideology and so-called ‘gender medicine’ with Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, Department of Education (ED) officials, and a representative from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS),” the news release stated.
Senior counsel and director for the Center of Conscience Initiatives at legal organization Alliance Defending Freedom Hal Frampton told The Center Square that “radical gender ideology hurts children, creating real victims by ignoring biological differences and reality.”
“Too often, vulnerable children experiencing difficult mental health issues are pushed toward harmful, life-altering drugs and surgeries, which are not proven to alleviate their mental health risks but lead to lifelong consequences,” Frampton said.
“We are finally seeing the tide turn in the U.S.,” Frampton told The Center Square. “In 2021, only one state protected children from medicalized transition procedures. As of July 2024, 26 states do.”
“In Europe, countries that once pioneered gender transition for minors are stepping back,” Frampton explained.
“We are hopeful that days like Detransition Awareness Day will continue to amplify the voices of people who are paying the price for the dangerous falsehood that men can be women and women can be men,” Frampton said.
The Department of Education’s Detrans Awareness Day meeting also served as “a forum for [the Department of Education] and [Department of Health and Human Services] officials to discuss their respective efforts in implementing the President’s agenda.”
The officials were able to “discuss additional strategies to protect young people from the dangers and harms associated with gender ideology,” according to the release.
“Secretary McMahon listened to the detransitioners’ personal stories of hardship and expressed her heartfelt sympathy and support for the cause they now champion,” the release said.
“I commend the young people in attendance for bravely sharing their experiences – and the medical and mental health professionals and parents for their tireless advocacy,” McMahon said.
“No teacher should attempt to persuade or coerce a student to undergo a gender transition,” McMahon said. “No parent should be lied to or prevented from knowing what is going on with their child’s mental or physical health.”
“We stand firmly alongside parents, professionals, advocates, and especially detransitioners, who understand firsthand the damage caused by indoctrinating kids to believe that they can ever be ‘born in the wrong body,’” McMahon said.
