The Battle Against Radical Transgender Ideology Rages On…
Apr 11, 2025 by FACT
President Donald Trump’s plethora of executive orders during his first three months in office have bolstered the conservative movement and renewed hope that America can once again be a nation that values faith, family, and freedom. While we applaud the Trump administration’s decisive actions to protect children, defend female athletes, and uphold traditional values, make no mistake – the battle is still raging. For lasting change, not only must the US Supreme Court affirm the legality of Trump’s executive orders, but Congress and the Tennessee State Legislature must also take steps to enshrine those values into federal and state law.
Take the transgender issue. In January, President Trump signed an executive order titled “Protecting Children From Chemical And Surgical Mutilation” as one of his first acts in office. Prior to that, Trump signed an executive order establishing that the federal government will only recognize two sexes – male and female – based on a person’s biological classification, not their self-prescribed “gender identity.”
“Accordingly, it is the policy of the United States that it will not fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support the so-called ‘transition’ of a child from one sex to another, and it will rigorously enforce all laws that prohibit or limit these destructive and life-altering procedures,” the second Order established.
Children’s hospitals across the nation immediately began indefinitely postponing transgender surgical and chemical interventions for minors in order to keep their federal funding. Within a few weeks, however, a federal judge paused Trump’s order by issuing a temporary injunction, and hospitals once again began using experimental “transgender” treatments on minors. This issue is still in limbo and is another reason why the Supreme Court must rule on U.S. v. Skrmetti this spring.
Trump’s many executive orders may be helpful in the short term – if they don’t get tied up in court – but solving the transgender issue in America will be accomplished through Supreme Court victories and state and federal laws. Later this month, SCOTUS will consider Mahmoud v. Taylor, which is concerned with “whether public schools burden parents’ religious exercise when they compel elementary school children to participate in instruction on gender and sexuality against their parents’ religious convictions and without notice or opportunity to opt out.” The result of this case will again have nationwide implications.
The case began three years ago when Montgomery County Public Schools implemented a new “inclusive” reading program that forced children to read LGBT books such as Trinity’s Rainbow, about a young boy who “transitions” to being a girl, and Born Ready, about a girl who “transitions” to being a boy.
“The children were told that when you are born, the doctors make a ‘guess’ about whether you are a boy or a girl, but sometimes the doctors guess wrong, and then, when you are four or five years old, you have to tell your parents that the doctors guessed wrong,” Leonard Sax, MD PhD, wrote for the Institute for Family Studies.
When parents learned about this radical indoctrination, a group of Muslim, Christian, and Jewish families requested to opt their children out of the “inclusivity” program that required students to read the books, but the request was denied. The group of parents then sued the district, but lost. They appealed their case to the federal district court and lost again. Finally, their case will appear before the US Supreme Court on April 22.
The plaintiffs’ legal representation will argue that the program is “an unconstitutional infringement on the parents’ First Amendment right of free exercise of their religion.” Countless conservative organizations, including a number of our fellow state family policy councils, have filed amicus briefs in support of the parents. If the Court rules in their favor, it would be a major win for parental rights in America.
The battle against the radical LGBT agenda continues in Tennessee as well. The Senate just passed SB 937, which would ensure teachers and school staff cannot be sued for using biologically accurate pronouns for students. Now awaiting approval in the House, the bill “also allows civil suits to be filed against employers and public schools that allow a student’s preferred pronoun to be used without parental permission.”
Last week, Governor Bill Lee signed HB 0064 into law, which “requires all residential educational programs in this state, regardless of type or duration, that allow minors to participate or to access residential facilities to segregate all restrooms, changing areas, and showers by immutable biological sex.” This bill is another big win for protecting girls in Tennessee’s private and public residential educational programs, such as boarding schools.
Although Trump’s executive orders are quite helpful short-term tools, we need long-term solutions at the state and federal levels. Tennessee is making good headway on these issues, and FACT will continue to work closely with lawmakers and elected officials to create a state that preserves parental rights, protects children, and upholds traditional values.
Take the transgender issue. In January, President Trump signed an executive order titled “Protecting Children From Chemical And Surgical Mutilation” as one of his first acts in office. Prior to that, Trump signed an executive order establishing that the federal government will only recognize two sexes – male and female – based on a person’s biological classification, not their self-prescribed “gender identity.”
“Accordingly, it is the policy of the United States that it will not fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support the so-called ‘transition’ of a child from one sex to another, and it will rigorously enforce all laws that prohibit or limit these destructive and life-altering procedures,” the second Order established.
Children’s hospitals across the nation immediately began indefinitely postponing transgender surgical and chemical interventions for minors in order to keep their federal funding. Within a few weeks, however, a federal judge paused Trump’s order by issuing a temporary injunction, and hospitals once again began using experimental “transgender” treatments on minors. This issue is still in limbo and is another reason why the Supreme Court must rule on U.S. v. Skrmetti this spring.
Trump’s many executive orders may be helpful in the short term – if they don’t get tied up in court – but solving the transgender issue in America will be accomplished through Supreme Court victories and state and federal laws. Later this month, SCOTUS will consider Mahmoud v. Taylor, which is concerned with “whether public schools burden parents’ religious exercise when they compel elementary school children to participate in instruction on gender and sexuality against their parents’ religious convictions and without notice or opportunity to opt out.” The result of this case will again have nationwide implications.
The case began three years ago when Montgomery County Public Schools implemented a new “inclusive” reading program that forced children to read LGBT books such as Trinity’s Rainbow, about a young boy who “transitions” to being a girl, and Born Ready, about a girl who “transitions” to being a boy.
“The children were told that when you are born, the doctors make a ‘guess’ about whether you are a boy or a girl, but sometimes the doctors guess wrong, and then, when you are four or five years old, you have to tell your parents that the doctors guessed wrong,” Leonard Sax, MD PhD, wrote for the Institute for Family Studies.
When parents learned about this radical indoctrination, a group of Muslim, Christian, and Jewish families requested to opt their children out of the “inclusivity” program that required students to read the books, but the request was denied. The group of parents then sued the district, but lost. They appealed their case to the federal district court and lost again. Finally, their case will appear before the US Supreme Court on April 22.
The plaintiffs’ legal representation will argue that the program is “an unconstitutional infringement on the parents’ First Amendment right of free exercise of their religion.” Countless conservative organizations, including a number of our fellow state family policy councils, have filed amicus briefs in support of the parents. If the Court rules in their favor, it would be a major win for parental rights in America.
The battle against the radical LGBT agenda continues in Tennessee as well. The Senate just passed SB 937, which would ensure teachers and school staff cannot be sued for using biologically accurate pronouns for students. Now awaiting approval in the House, the bill “also allows civil suits to be filed against employers and public schools that allow a student’s preferred pronoun to be used without parental permission.”
Last week, Governor Bill Lee signed HB 0064 into law, which “requires all residential educational programs in this state, regardless of type or duration, that allow minors to participate or to access residential facilities to segregate all restrooms, changing areas, and showers by immutable biological sex.” This bill is another big win for protecting girls in Tennessee’s private and public residential educational programs, such as boarding schools.
Although Trump’s executive orders are quite helpful short-term tools, we need long-term solutions at the state and federal levels. Tennessee is making good headway on these issues, and FACT will continue to work closely with lawmakers and elected officials to create a state that preserves parental rights, protects children, and upholds traditional values.
