Oppose Transgender Erasure, Oppose CA AB 600

We request your opposition to California AB 600 which would allow parents or guardians to opt their child out from accessing information about transgender concepts in schools. This bill will cause harm in a number of ways.   First, the right to opt out due to religious beliefs in California is limited to health education, such as sexual education. It does not apply to social sciences, so extending this exemption to transgender concepts frames transgender identity as a “medical condition” rather than a part of a persons’ identity. It neglects the impactful historical and social narratives that have been missing from classrooms for generations, education that can provide clarity and destigmatization, even for students who are not transgender, playing a part in lower the isolation and bullying of transgender youth in schools, as LGBTQ+ history is normalized to all students. Second, AB 600 also targets anonymous surveys and questionnaires that address transgender topics. This part of the bill is particularly harmful to students living in unaccepting households. Parents may use the opt-out provision to prevent their children from engaging in even anonymous forms of self-reflection, reporting, or seeking support. Transgender youth face disproportionate levels of attempts in suicide and this continues to rise with amplified anti-transgender rhetoric. Blocking students from receiving aid relating to their identity from schools may block them from receiving aid at all.   Finally, the legal right to action established by this bill would also discourage educators, counselors, and allies from assisting transgender students in need. This aspect of AB 600 would worsen the previously mentioned impacts as it would completely isolate transgender identity and create a fear of legal action if anything is done to aid them.