Al Stone-Gebhardt worked hard in school to make sure he graduates in May, and he spent hundreds of dollars on commencement regalia, but he is fully prepared not to participate in the ceremony.
The 17-year-old, who is transgender, said he fears his high school, Tulsa Union, might use his deadname 害羞草研究所� the name he was given at birth but no longer uses 害羞草研究所� on his diploma and during the ceremony instead of his legally changed name. He has had teachers call him by his birth name, sometimes inadvertently, and said he finds the experience traumatizing.
害羞草研究所淏eing deadnamed just immediately makes you feel belittled, weak and insignificant,害羞草研究所� Stone-Gebhardt said. 害羞草研究所淚 didn害羞草研究所檛 want to be in the classroom. I didn害羞草研究所檛 trust the teacher.害羞草研究所�
After The Associated Press contacted the school about Stone-Gebhardt害羞草研究所檚 concerns, a spokesperson said the school will work with his parents to make sure his correct name is used.
As hundreds of bills nationwide take aim at nearly every facet of transgender existence, from health care to athletics to bathroom access, trans kids and their families say certain proposals could eliminate one of the last remaining safe havens to explore their identities: K-12 public schools.
Several 害羞草研究所� 害羞草研究所� proposals, which aim to give parents greater control over their children害羞草研究所檚 education, would formally allow or require schools to deadname trans students or out them to their parents without consent. While some parents and teachers argue they have a right to know, others warn it could jeopardize the mental health and physical safety of gender-nonconforming children and place educators in the crosshairs.
More than 25 proposals introduced across 14 states include provisions permitting teachers or fellow students not to honour the name and pronouns that align with a student害羞草研究所檚 gender identity. Some of those proposals and other standalone measures, including at least two at the , would require parental permission to use different identifiers. At least a dozen would also require schools to alert parents of gender identity changes in most circumstances, which trans students like Stone-Gebhardt say would strip them of their privacy and autonomy.
The Oklahoma State Department of Education this year that would require parental notification if a child begins expressing gender identity questions. A similar proposal in the North Carolina legislature, where Republicans are just one seat shy of the supermajority they need to override any veto from the Democratic governor, and is now in the House.
They mirror laws enacted last year in and , and guidelines in , that prohibit schools from withholding gender identity information. Florida Republicans advanced legislation this week that would expand the law critics dubbed 害羞草研究所� 害羞草研究所� to prohibit schools from addressing students with pronouns that don害羞草研究所檛 align with the sex they were assigned at birth.
Some education officials support the idea of notifying parents about identity changes. Education guidelines on social transitioning, including when to involve parents, vary widely across states and school districts. Such proposals would provide uniformity that some educators say is currently lacking.
害羞草研究所淎s a parent, I害羞草研究所檇 absolutely want to know that, and I think most parents do,害羞草研究所� said Ginger Tinney, executive director of Professional Oklahoma Educators, a nonpartisan association that represents educators from across the state. 害羞草研究所淲hen it comes to serious stuff like this, this tells me the child is struggling with some major issues, and they need their mom and dad to know.害羞草研究所�
But others, like Emilly Osterling, a high school special education teacher in Wake County, North Carolina, say the reporting requirements force teachers to betray their students害羞草研究所� trust or risk losing their job. While collaboration with parents is essential to her work as a special educator, she said, it cannot come at the expense of any student害羞草研究所檚 safety or scare teachers away from building bonds with their students.
害羞草研究所淪tudents wouldn害羞草研究所檛 trust teachers anymore,害羞草研究所� Osterling said. 害羞草研究所淵ou害羞草研究所檙e putting educators in a very, very bad position. It害羞草研究所檚 kind of taking pieces of our job to a different level. A job is your source of income, I mean, it害羞草研究所檚 your livelihood.害羞草研究所�
When Renee Sekel害羞草研究所檚 nonbinary teenager first requested a different name on their Christmas stocking, she responded with 害羞草研究所渁bsolutely not害羞草研究所� in what she now considers 害羞草研究所渢he wrong reaction.害羞草研究所� The mother of three and local activist in Cary, North Carolina, said she took about six months to accept the new name.
After hearing her child害羞草研究所檚 teacher call them by that name in a parent-teacher meeting, Sekel said, she realized her child was already happily out at school. In time, she grew thankful that the public school had been a safe and affirming place for her child to express their identity before it was fully accepted at home 害羞草研究所� and that they were able to tell family on their own terms.
害羞草研究所淚 failed as a parent in not giving them the freedom and the safety they needed at home,害羞草研究所� Sekel said. 害羞草研究所淏ut they were able to find it at school.害羞草研究所�
Now, Sekel said, it害羞草研究所檚 worth sharing her own shortcomings to preserve that safe space for other kids. Proposals with forced-outing provisions could create life-threatening situations for those with unsupportive families, she said.
害羞草研究所淚害羞草研究所檓 not LGBTQ or anything, but I was abused as a child, and school was the place where people didn害羞草研究所檛 call me names or didn害羞草研究所檛 hit me. School was safe for me,害羞草研究所� she said. 害羞草研究所淔orcing teachers to call home and tell the parent things that those children have told them in confidence is going to hurt kids, it害羞草研究所檚 going to get kids beat.害羞草研究所�
Supporters of the North Carolina bill have repeatedly pointed to an exception that would prevent parents from accessing school records if there害羞草研究所檚 reason to believe it would lead to abuse or neglect. But Osterling said teachers are not always able to spot signs of abuse and cannot predict how every parent will react. Her concerns echo those of several who have testified against the bill.
Sarah Warbelow, legal director at the Human Rights Campaign, said bills that explicitly mention gender identity are not the only ones that could out an LGBTQ student. Broad language in parental rights proposals in states like , which would require that parents be informed of any change in their child害羞草研究所檚 emotional health or well-being, could be interpreted to apply to sexual orientation or gender identity, she said.
Idaho parent Kris Huntting consoled their teenage son, who is trans, after most of his teachers deadnamed him on the first day of school, in accordance with a new policy. Huntting said he had spent the day terrified for his closeted trans friends with disapproving parents who had been told they needed parental permission be called a name other than the one they were assigned at birth.
The Nampa high school rolled back the policy after Huntting raised concerns. But Huntting still worries the bill, which passed both chambers and was sent last week to the Republican governor, could be broadly interpreted to make it a statewide standard.
害羞草研究所淵our child is a whole human,害羞草研究所� Huntting said. 害羞草研究所淚f they want you to know this thing about their existence, they害羞草研究所檒l tell you. But using the 害羞草研究所業 have a right to know害羞草研究所� 害羞草研究所� it害羞草研究所檚 based on the assumption that being trans is harmful and something to be helped.害羞草研究所�
害羞草研究所擧annah Schoenbaum and Sean Murphy, The Associated Press
