TALAHASSEE, Fla. — The mother of a transgender girl sobbed in federal court Wednesday as she contemplated having to move away from her Navy officer husband to get health care for her 12-year-old if Florida's ban on gender dysphoria treatments for minors takes effect.
The woman, who testified as Jane Doe to protect her child's identity, said her daughter went from fearful and angry to a thriving, happy straight A student after being allowed to live as a girl about eight years ago, a decision which she made with her husband after several visits to their family doctor.
But now that the girl is approaching puberty, she fears that she will turn into a boy. Without treatment, she and her family will be devastated, the mother said.
“I'm going to the ends of the earth to get my daughter the help she needs,” the woman testified, sobbing as she pulled facial tissues from a box. “I think about it: Will our family be torn apart? Should we live somewhere else, far away from my husband?”
The testimony came as a lawsuit challenged Florida's ban on medical treatment for transgender children, such as hormone therapy or puberty blockers, a law pushed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has campaigned on the issue as he sought the presidency. The law also places restrictions on trans healthcare for adults.
“This all started with the governor.” said Thomas Redburn, an attorney who represents trans adults and the families of trans children.
He noted other bills that DeSantis has pushed to show that the governor and Republican lawmakers have attacked the rights of transgender people, including restricting the use of pronouns in schools that do not correspond to people's gender at birth.
But lawyer Mohammad Jazil, who represents the state, said the law is a matter of protecting people. He said in one case, someone was prescribed hormones after a 30-minute telehealth appointment. And other people have decided to return to their birth gender and have learned that their treatment has caused lasting damage, he said.
“This case is not about overregulation, but about underregulation,” Jazil said.
Judge Robert Hinkle temporarily blocked enforcement of the law pending the outcome of the trial. The lawsuit also challenges restrictions placed on trans adult care, which will go into effect during the trial.
At least 22 states have now passed laws restricting or banning gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors, and many of those states are facing lawsuits. Courts have issued mixed rulings, with the nation's first law, in Arkansas, struck down by a federal judge who said the care ban violated the due process rights of transgender youth and their families.
Enforcement has been blocked in two states besides Florida, and enforcement is currently allowed in seven other states or will soon go into effect.
Redburn said in his opening arguments that Florida's law is unconstitutional because it excludes an entire group of people. He pointed out that non-transgender adults can receive the same treatments, such as estrogen and testosterone, without having to jump through hoops.
“The state of Florida has decided that people cannot be transgender,” Redburn said. “The fewer transgender people, the better.”
The girl's mother testified that their family's pediatrician diagnosed her daughter with gender dysphoria after she began taking an interest in girls' toys and clothes as a three-year-old. She described her daughter screaming and taking off her clothes in her car seat as she was being driven to preschool. She and her husband have made four-hour round trips to the University of Florida so their daughter can receive care from experts.
As for risks such as infertility, which Jazil noted in opening statements, the woman said: “The benefits to my daughter far outweigh the potential risks. Her greatest fear is what she calls becoming a boy. I assured her that won't happen.”
Jazil only briefly interviewed the girl's mother, pointing out, among other things, that University of Florida medical records did not list a height and weight for Jane Doe's daughter.
Redburn said gender dysphoria is real and not something people choose to do because of social media and the influence of the internet, as policymakers have argued. He pointed out that Republican lawmakers who pushed for the law labeled transgender people evil and a cult. He noted that the bill's sponsor argued that God does not make mistakes.
A separate lawsuit was filed Wednesday by three educators challenging the law limiting the use of pronouns in schools. They say transgender and non-binary teachers are prohibited from being themselves.
Ironically, Jazil consistently referred to Jane Doe's daughter as “her” and “she,” despite the state forcing others to use pronouns corresponding to birth gender in schools.
The trial on trans care is expected to last five days.