Heather Clark – December 3, 2020
An Australian teen who was born female but identifies as male has been removed from her parents’ care after a judge ruled that it is unsafe for her to remain at home considering her risk of self-harm and the parents’ disagreement with pursuing a sex change.
“[The authorities] say we will not allow her to change gender, so it’s dangerous for her to come back to our house because we will mentally abuse her,” the unidentified father told The Australian. “They want us to consent to testosterone treatment.”
Attorneys for the parents have filed paperwork appealing a protective order from October, in which a Children’s Court magistrate cited the risk of self-harm the teen as she had posted about suicide online last year. He also found it probable that the child was enduring verbal abuse over her “feelings and expression of gender identity,” which the parents deny.
According to reports, the family moved to Australia 10 years ago and have been aware that their now 15-year-old daughter suffers from depression. They state that she also struggles with social skills, her eating and body image, and puberty was a difficult transition for her.
However, instead of pursuing a “sex change,” they prefer for the teen to be seen by an independent psychologist to find the root cause of her feelings and to provide help that is less invasive, considering the permanency of the alternative option.
On Nov. 7, attorneys for the teen filed paperwork seeking for the child to be allowed to begin “hormone therapy,” but the parents have requested a second opinion first. Child protective officials have reportedly consented to obtaining a second opinion.
“Especially Australians, they just can’t believe that it happens in Australia,” the mother stated.
“The end of parenting as we knew it. We have no rights. Our children can be seriously harmed by the government and medical profession and we are powerless to stop it,”