South Carolina lawmakers are pushing bills including H. 4624 that would ban medically necessary healthcare and restrict the daily lives of transgender youth. Today we want to share the story of one family with a trans child and the harm these laws could cause.
Skyler, 13, lives in South Carolina with his siblings and his parents, Wendy and Alberto. He’s trans, and his family supports him.
Skyler’s family has been on a journey of understanding. Skyler’s dad, Alberto, grew up in a conservative community not unlike South Carolina, and at first he didn’t know what it meant for Skyler to be transgender. But he committed to learning the facts and getting to know what his child needed.
Last year Alberto drove his pickup truck in the local Pride parade flying the biggest rainbow flag you’ve ever seen — because that’s what dads do when they’re proud of their children.
Skyler was heartbroken last year when South Carolina lawmakers passed a ban on trans kids participating in school sports. He wanted to join the boys’ basketball team at his school, but politicians outlawed that simple joy of adolescence. Now the same politicians are considering whether to take away something far more serious from Skyler and his family: The right to access medically necessary healthcare with the advice of a family doctor.
Skyler’s mom, Wendy, was quick to support him, but she is anxious about the future. Skyler is making small but significant changes to his name and clothing. Even this practice, known as “social transition,” could be outlawed in schools under proposals like H. 4707 that were introduced in the past year.
Families with trans kids want the same things as other families: For their children to be safe and healthy, and for them to feel loved. When the government interferes with the right to care for our own children, fundamental civil liberties are at risk.
To learn more about our commitment to families like Skyler's, visit our LGBTQ Rights issue page.
