Kentucky Youth Law Project, Inc.
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News/Noticias

KYLP: Gender -Affirming Health Care is Life-Saving Health Care;
Asks House Leaders to Reject HB 120
Frankfort, Kentucky, February 3, 2023 -- Declaring that gender-affirming health care is life-saving health care, the Kentucky Youth Law Project called upon Speaker of the Kentucky House of Representatives, Rep. David W. Osborne, to urge House leadership to reject House Bill 120, which would prohibit health care professionals from providing gender-affirming care to transgender youth, under the threat of losing their professional license. Calling the bill "dangerous and misguided," KYLP Legal Director Keith D. Elston said that the bill is built on and perpetuates discrimination against transgender youths, defies the best practices established by peer-reviewed medical science, which is endorsed by every major medical association that has reviewed the issue.  Further, it violates ethical standards required under Kentucky law, and fails to comply with federal nondiscrimination requirements. You may read Elston's letter to Speaker Osborne below.
​

Kentucky Lawmakers File Anti-Trans/Nonbinary Bills Affecting
Access to School Bathrooms, Gender-Affirming Health Care

Frankfort, Kentucky, January 5, 2023 -- In the first few days of the 2023 Kentucky General Assembly, lawmakers wasted no time in filing two bills which, if enacted, would bring great harm to transgender and nonbinary (TNB) children and youth.
House Bill 30, introduced and sponsored by Representative Bill Wesley (R-Ravenna) and co-sponsored by Representative John Hodgson (R-Fisherville), would prohibit TNB students from using the bathrooms, locker rooms, and showers consistent with their gender identity. Instead, they would be required to "out" themselves to teachers or school administrators so that they can get permission to use single-user facilities. A TNB person who uses the facilities consistent with their gender identity may be sued by any other student who learns that they used that facility, even if they were completely unaware of the TNB student's gender identity at the time of the incident. The school may also be sued by the "offended" student or their parents for as long as 30 years after the incident.
          "This is a ridiculous attempt to eliminate TNB students from the public schools," said Keith D. Elston, Legal Director of the Kentucky Youth Law Project, a Lexington-based nonprofit legal services corporation representing LGBTQI+ children and youth throughout Kentucky. "Trans students are not a danger to other students. All they want is to use the restroom in peace. If anything, the other students are a danger to transgender and nonbinary students. If enacted, this HB 30 will give further permission to anti-trans bullies to harass and attack TNB students, on school property and off of it," said Elston.
          A 2019 study found that TNB teenagers, age 13 to 17 reported being told by teachers or staff that they could not use restrooms or locker rooms consistent with their gender identity at school. One out of every four students in the study (25.9%) reported being a victim of sexual assault in the past 12 months. Transgender and nonbinary teens who were subject to restroom or lock room restrictions had an even higher prevalence of sexual assault, at 36%, according to findings published in the journal Pediatrics. The rates of sexual assault for nontrans teens (those whose gender identity matches the sex they were assigned at birth) is 15% for girls and 4% for boys, according to the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey, published biannually by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
          Research has shown that restrictive policies draw unwanted negative attention to TNB youth, but until the Pediatrics study, it was not clear whether there was a connection to sexual violence.
          House Bill 120 is even worse. This bill, introduced by Representative Savannah Maddox (R-Dry Ridge) and co-sponsored by Representative Felicia Rabourne (R-Pendleton), proposes to prohibit physicians and other health care providers from providing "gender transition procedures," including any medical or surgical service provided or performed for the purpose of assisting a person with a physical gender transition. This would include physician's services, inpatient and outpatient hospital services, puberty-blocking drugs, cross-sex hormones, or genital or nongenital gender reassignment surgery. Health care providers are also prohibited from referring any child under the age of 18 for gender-affirming health care. Such conduct would be classified as "unprofessional conduct" under HB 120 and subject the provider to disciplinary action by their licensing or certifying agency.
          But wait! That's not all. HB 120 also prohibits any person, including employees of a state or federal government, from aiding and abetting the performance or inducement of gender transition procedures to any child under the age of 18. Further, the Attorney General and members of the legislature would be given a right to intervene to defend the bill's provisions, if they are enacted. And of course, no taxpayer funds may be used to pay for gender-affirming health care through Medicaid Services, and private insurers would not be required to cover gender-affirming health care.
          "This is just a mean and nasty attempt to perpetuate misinformation and anti-trans prejudice by legislators who have no business making medical decisions," Elston said. "There is no scientific basis for preventing health care providers from providing gender-affirming care to their patients. And there is a great deal of scientific evidence that gender-affirming health care is life-saving health care, reducing the prevalence of depression, anxiety, and self-harming behaviors including suicidality." 
          KYLP is encouraging our supporters to contact their legislator, House Leaders, and all members of the House Health Services Committee to demand that they "Kill HB 120 before it kills our children." The Legislative Hotline is 1-800-372-7181.
Legisladores de Kentucky presentan proyectos de ley anti-trans/no binarios que niegan acceso a baños escolares y atención médica que afirma el género
Frankfort, Kentucky, 5 de enero de 2023 -- En los primeros días de la Asamblea General de Kentucky de 2023, los legisladores no perdieron tiempo en presentar dos proyectos de ley que, de aprobarse, causarían un gran daño a los niños y jóvenes transgénero y no binarios (TNB).
          El Proyecto de Ley 30 de la Cámara, presentado y patrocinado por el Representante Bill Wesley (R-Ravenna) y copatrocinado por el Representante John Hodgson (R-Fisherville), prohibiría a los estudiantes de TNB usar los baños, vestuarios y duchas de acuerdo con su identidad de género. En cambio, se les exigiría que se "desvelen" ante los maestros o administradores escolares para que puedan obtener permiso para usar las instalaciones de un solo usuario. Una persona de TNB que usa las instalaciones de acuerdo con su identidad de género puede ser demandada por cualquier otro estudiante que se entere de que usó esas instalaciones, incluso si desconocían por completo la identidad de género del estudiante de TNB en el momento del incidente. La escuela también puede ser demandada por el estudiante "ofendido" o sus padres hasta 30 años después del incidente.
          "Este es un intento ridículo de eliminar a los estudiantes de TNB de las escuelas públicas", dijo Keith D. Elston, director legal de Kentucky Youth Law Project, una corporación de servicios legales sin fines de lucro con sede en Lexington que representa a niños y jóvenes LGBTQI+ en todo Kentucky. "Los estudiantes trans no son un peligro para otros estudiantes. Todo lo que quieren es usar el baño en paz. En todo caso, los otros estudiantes son un peligro para los estudiantes transgénero y no binarios. Si se promulga, este HB 30 dará más permiso para anti- acosadores trans para acosar y atacar a los estudiantes de TNB, dentro y fuera de la propiedad escolar", dijo Elston.
                 Un estudio de 2019 encontró que los adolescentes de TNB, de 13 a 17 años, informaron que los maestros o el personal les dijeron que no podían usar los baños o los vestuarios de acuerdo con su identidad de género en la escuela. Uno de cada cuatro estudiantes en el estudio (25,9%) informó haber sido víctima de agresión sexual en los últimos 12 meses. Los adolescentes transgénero y no binarios que estaban sujetos a restricciones en los baños o vestuarios tenían una prevalencia aún mayor de agresión sexual, con un 36 %, según los hallazgos publicados en la revista Pediatrics. Las tasas de agresión sexual para los adolescentes que no son trans (aquellos cuya identidad de género coincide con el sexo que se les asignó al nacer) es del 15 % para las niñas y del 4 % para los niños, según la Encuesta de Vigilancia del Comportamiento de Riesgo de los Jóvenes, publicada semestralmente por los Centros para las Enfermedades de EE. UU. Control y Prevención.
          La investigación ha demostrado que las políticas restrictivas atraen una atención negativa no deseada hacia los jóvenes de TNB, pero hasta el estudio Pediatrics no estaba claro si había una conexión con la violencia sexual.
          El Proyecto de Ley 120 de la Cámara es aún peor. Este proyecto de ley, presentado por la Representante Savannah Maddox (R-Dry Ridge) y copatrocinado por la Representante Felicia Rabourne (R-Pendleton), propone prohibir que los médicos y otros proveedores de atención médica brinden "procedimientos de transición de género", incluidos los procedimientos médicos o quirúrgicos. servicio proporcionado o realizado con el fin de ayudar a una persona con una transición física de género. Esto incluiría servicios médicos, servicios hospitalarios para pacientes hospitalizados y ambulatorios, medicamentos para bloquear la pubertad, hormonas cruzadas o cirugía de reasignación de género genital o no genital. Los proveedores de atención médica también tienen prohibido remitir a cualquier niño menor de 18 años para atención médica de afirmación de género. Dicha conducta se clasificaría como "conducta no profesional" según la HB 120 y estaría sujeta al proveedor a medidas disciplinarias por parte de su agencia de certificación o licencia.
          ¡Pero espera! Eso no es todo. HB 120 también prohíbe a cualquier persona, incluidos los empleados del gobierno estatal o federal, ayudar e incitar a la realización o inducción de procedimientos de transición de género a cualquier niño menor de 18 años. Además, el Fiscal General y los miembros de la legislatura recibirían derecho a intervenir para defender las disposiciones del proyecto de ley, si se promulgan. Y, por supuesto, no se pueden utilizar fondos de los contribuyentes para pagar la atención médica de afirmación de género a través de los servicios de Medicaid, y las aseguradoras privadas no estarían obligadas a cubrir la atención médica de afirmación de género.
          “Este es solo un intento mezquino y desagradable de perpetuar la desinformación y los prejuicios contra las personas trans por parte de los legisladores que no tienen por qué tomar decisiones médicas”, dijo Elston. "No existe una base científica para impedir que los proveedores de atención médica brinden atención de afirmación de género a sus pacientes. Y hay una gran cantidad de evidencia científica de que la atención médica de afirmación de género salva vidas, reduce la prevalencia de depresión, ansiedad y conductas autolesivas, incluida la tendencia suicida".
          KYLP alienta a nuestros seguidores a comunicarse con su legislador, los líderes de la Cámara y todos los miembros del Comité de Servicios de Salud de la Cámara para exigir que "maten la HB 120 antes de que mate a nuestros hijos". La línea directa legislativa es 1-800-372-7181.

U.S. Social Security Administration Allows Individuals to
Select the Sex That Aligns with Gender Identity

Via LGBT Law Notes, November 2022 -- The Social Security Administration announced on October 19, 2022 that people will be "allowed to select the sex that best aligns with their gender identity in records," reported the New York Times, which explained, "The agency said it would now accept people's self-identified gender identity of male or female, even if their identity documents show otherwise, and it is exploring a future policy that would allow for an 'x' sex designation for people who do not identify as either male or female." (The Biden Administration had previously agreed to using an 'x' sex designation on passports for people who consider themselves to be non-binary in terms of gender, in settlement of long-running litigation.)

Commentary
Via @KYLantern (Dec. 12, 2022):  In her Lantern debut, Teri Carter writes: "With the election just three weeks away, my small, rural Kentucky town was suddenly 'ate up,' as Grandma Ann might say, not with politics but with sex and sin. Specifically, fear-mongering, religious statements aimed at the LGBTQ community, the kind of rhetoric that gets people killed."

Ninth Circuit Rejects Challenge to Washington State Ban on Conversion Therapy for Minors, Paving the Way for Possible Supreme Court Review


Kentucky Youth Law Project Leader
Reflects on Accomplishments in 2022


October 19, 2022
LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY -- As the year starts to wind down to a close, KYLP Founder and Legal Director Keith D. Elston reflects on a year of important progress and accomplishments for the organization and the clients it serves. For example, in 2022, KYLP:
  • negotiated an agreement with a Southern Kentucky school district to provide additional options for transgender students who need to use restrooms and changing areas;
  • brought a successful administrative complaint against a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in Mayfield, who practiced so-called "conversion therapy" on our client when he was a minor -- the first time in the country that a regulatory agency has made a finding that a licensed mental health provider has violated state ethics provisions by engaging in the deceptive, discredited, and dangerous practice of so-called "conversion therapy;"
  • advocated for the passage of a law banning the use of so-called "conversion therapy" on minors by licensed mental health professionals;
  • fought to prevent passage of anti-trans legislation in the Kentucky General Assembly;
  • represented more than a dozen underage LGBTQ+ clients in dependency, neglect and abuse cases;
  • was appointed Friend of the Court to advocate for a young LGBTQ+ client who is the subject of a custody and timesharing dispute between their parents;
  • trained foster parents, lawyers, judges, social workers and educators about the needs and concerns of LGBTQ+ children and youth;
  • assisted many clients in obtaining name change orders from Kentucky courts;
  • partnered with the University of Kentucky Legal Clinic to provide training and practical legal experience to law students;
  • worked with the Kentucky Department of Community Based Services to identify and improve upon existing laws that currently present challenges to LGBTQ+ homeless and runaway youth;
  • trained attorneys, judges, social workers, educators, and foster/adoptive parents about the special needs and concerns of LGBTQ+ children and youth;
  • trained several graduate and undergraduate interns; and
  • brought information about the organization's important work to nearly a dozen communities around the Commonwealth through our tabling and volunteer recruitment efforts.
"Whew!" said Elston. "That was a lot of work over the past 12 months! However, this is no time to rest on our laurels: our Board of Directors and I are excited about the opportunities we see coming up in 2023 and we are energized by the work we are doing to protect the safety and rights of our LGBTQ+ clients, and we are prepared to face the challenges next year head on."
Kentucky Youth Law Project promociona
avances y logros en 2022


19 de octubre de 2022
LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY -- A medida que el año llega a su fin, el fundador y director legal de KYLP, Keith D. Elston, reflexiona sobre un año de importantes avances y logros para la organización y los clientes a los que sirve. Por ejemplo, en 2022, KYLP:
  • negoció un acuerdo con un distrito escolar del sur de Kentucky para brindar opciones adicionales para estudiantes transgénero que necesitan usar baños y vestuarios;
  • presentó una queja administrativa exitosa contra un trabajador social clínico con licencia en Mayfield, quien practicó la llamada "terapia de conversión" en nuestro cliente cuando era menor de edad, la primera vez en el país que una agencia reguladora determina que un proveedor de salud mental ha violado las disposiciones de ética del estado al participar en la práctica engañosa, desacreditada y peligrosa de la llamada "terapia de conversión";
  • abogó por la aprobación de una ley que prohíba el uso de la llamada "terapia de conversión" en menores por parte de profesionales de la salud mental autorizados;
  • luchó para evitar la aprobación de una legislación anti-trans en la Asamblea General de Kentucky;
  • representó a más de una docena de clientes LGBTQ+ menores de edad en casos de dependencia, negligencia y abuso;
  • fue designado Amigo de la corte para defender a un cliente joven LGBTQ+ que es objeto de una disputa de custodia y tiempo compartido entre sus padres;
  • padres de crianza temporal capacitados, abogados, jueces, trabajadores sociales y educadores sobre las necesidades y preocupaciones de los niños y jóvenes LGBTQ+;
  • ayudó a muchos clientes a obtener órdenes de cambio de nombre de los tribunales de Kentucky;
  • se asoció con la Clínica Legal de la Universidad de Kentucky para brindar capacitación y experiencia legal práctica a los estudiantes de derecho;
  • trabajó con el Departamento de Servicios Comunitarios de Kentucky para identificar y mejorar las leyes existentes que actualmente presentan desafíos para los jóvenes LGBTQ+ sin hogar y fugitivos;
  • abogados, jueces, trabajadores sociales, educadores y padres de crianza/adoptivos capacitados sobre las necesidades y preocupaciones especiales de los niños y jóvenes LGBTQ+;
  • capacitó a varios pasantes de posgrado y pregrado; y
  • trajo información sobre el importante trabajo de la organización a casi una docena de comunidades en todo el Commonwealth a través de nuestros esfuerzos de reclutamiento de voluntarios y presentaciones.

"¡Uf!" dijo Elston. "¡Eso fue mucho trabajo en los últimos 12 meses! Sin embargo, este no es el momento de dormirnos en los laureles: nuestra Junta Directiva y yo estamos entusiasmados con las oportunidades que vemos en 2023 y estamos energizados por el trabajo que hacemos". estamos haciendo para proteger la seguridad y los derechos de nuestros clientes LGBTQ+, y estamos preparados para enfrentar los desafíos el próximo año".

Kentucky Youth Law Project Issues Statement on
Passage of Bill Barring Trans Girls from Sports

 
FRANKFORT – The Kentucky Youth Law Project (KYLP) strongly opposed a bill passed by the Kentucky General Assembly to bar Kentucky schools from allowing girls with diverse gender identities to participate in athletic competition with other girls from 6th grade through college. The newly enacted law will serve to increase the marginalization already experienced by trans girls, pose harm to organizations that are supportive of trans rights, and cause pain to cisgender girls who may have this law applied to them punitively or mistakenly.

The law, formerly referred to as SB 83 and HB 23, requires schools and other organizations to join in the marginalization of trans girls by requiring them to show proof of their gender in order to participate in girls’ sports. If a school permits a trans girl to participate in girls’ sports, they could face monetary loss from lawsuits. This law does not regulate boys sports. 

The law focuses on a problem that does not exist but serves as a mechanism to create a punitive environment for young trans people. The number of trans girls competing in sports are few.  In fact, of the 50,000+ female student athletes in high school sports, there is not a single identified transgender female athlete. For all female sports in Kentucky, only one middle school student is affected by this law.

"There is such a miniscule number of transgender girls in Kentucky sports," KYLP Legal Director Keith  D. Elston noted, "that it is almost laughable, if it wasn't so pathetic, for the state's lawmakers to claim that taxpayer funds need to be used to police girls' sports because one middle school trans girl is a threat to all of women's sports in Kentucky." 

The participation of transgender girls in sports neither prevents cisgender girls from participating in sports nor from receiving any scholarships. Beyond the damage to trans girls, the law could be weaponized against cisgender girls who are not perceived to be feminine enough, or purposely used to attack competitors. Meanwhile, child welfare advocates are already noticing that the persistent attacks on transgender children and youth are creating a mental health crisis for these kids. Depression and anxiety have increased significantly, and a feeling of belonging in their school community has dropped way off.

The preponderance of evidence shows that young trans people are already at great risk of bullying, violence, and discrimination. KYLP and other children's advocacy groups believe that laws like this law will be used to further attacks against LGBTQ+ children and youth. Particularly hard-hit will be LGBTQ+ youth who are also people of color and other marginalized identities. Those seeking to protect young girls’ participation in sports will find that the legislation will do the opposite. Instead, creating an environment where all girls’ bodies will be under scrutiny.

Transgender sports need to be inclusive of all athletes. KYLP believes that schools can keep a level playing field and still include transgender students in sports. Twenty-five states have successfully implemented policies that allow transgender youth athletes and their peers to participate side by side, while at the same time ensuring that boys cannot join a girls' sports team.

“We can celebrate women's sports AND protect transgender youth from discrimination,” said  Elston, “making sure that all young people can access the opportunities that sports afford.”

Growing up is hard enough for transgender students, who often face bullying, harassment, and mistreatment because of their gender identity. “No student would pretend to be transgender just to join a particular sports team,” Elston said. “And no transgender student should be singled out for further bullying and discrimination, but that is exactly what this law does.”

KYLP Reaches Agreement with Bell County Public School District
Regarding Bathroom Usage for Trans Youth


May 10, 2022

PINEVILLE, KENTUCKY -- The Kentucky Youth Law Project, Inc. announced this week that it had successfully negotiated an agreement with the Bell County Board of Education to make several single-user restrooms available for any student who needs some additional privacy. 

The matter arose out of a transgender male student, E.R., was told by Bell County High School school administrators that he was not permitted to use the men's restrooms, but would be allowed to use women's restrooms or the restroom in the nurse's office, which is located at the far end of the school in the lower level. Because the student clearly presents as male, which would have made other girls using the facilities uncomfortable and potentially exposed him to disclosure of his gender identity and a risk of harassment or assault, the student's only option was to use the school nurse's restroom. This proved problematic on several occasions, since it was far away from our client's classes, thus making him tardy when he had to use the restroom. It also wasn't convenient when he had classes in the vocational education building where no provisions were made for him to use the facilities in that building. In fact, when he wasn't able to make the long trip to the nurse's station one time, he was punished by the school administrators for using the men's room. The previous rule extended to restroom use by our client even on field trips and for after-school activities, if the school was even open.

The Biden Administration's Justice Department and Education Department interpret Title IX, which prohibits discrimination based on sex in any educational program or district that receives federal funding. In Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia (2020), in a landmark ruling regarding Title VII, the federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in employment, the United States Supreme Court ruled that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression was discrimination based on sex and thus prohibited by federal law.  Typically, KYLP Legal Director Keith D. Elston noted, when the courts interpret Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 in a certain way, the interpretation extends to Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 in the same or very similar fashion because the wording in both laws is nearly identical.

"After consulting with my client and his parents," Elston said, "we decided that the compromise the district was offering was reasonable for several reasons. First, it provided our client better access to school restrooms than he had previously been permitted; and second, it provided that any student, transgender or cisgender, would be able to use these single-user restrooms if they needed a little extra privacy." For instance, Elston added, a student who was pregnant or going through menstruation, a differently-abled student who needed an aide to assist in using the restroom, or simply a student who did not feel comfortable using communal restroom facilities.

Elston concluded, "this agreement was a good compromise: it created a less hostile environment for our client, treated all students similarly so that the district wasn't singling out our client for different treatment, and allowed the school district to avoid litigation or a time-consuming investigation by the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights, which would have imposed mandatory requirements which would have probably been more burdensome than the Agreement we entered."


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  • Home/Inicio
  • News/Noticias
  • Legal Help/Ayuda legal
  • Support/Soporte
  • Volunteer/Voluntario
  • ABOUT US/Sobre nosotros
  • Conversion "Therapy"/La "terapia" de conversión
  • MENTAL HEALTH/SALUD MENTAL
  • Transgender Youth/Jóvenes transgénero
  • School Climate/Clima Escolar
  • Blog: Carver: Queering Education
  • Facts about Suicide/Datos sobre el suicidio
  • KYLP Archive
  • KYLP Store