Republican U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, one of the most anti-LGBTQ+ members of Congress, wants to make it a crime to provide gender-affirming care to minors.Greene Friday introduced the Protect Children’s Innocence Act, which would make it a class C felony to provide any such care to a minor.
Conviction would carry a prison sentence of 10 to 25 years and a fine of up to $250,000, an aide to Greene told The Hill.Procedures banned under the bill would include puberty blockers and hormone treatment as well as surgery, although genital surgery is almost never performed on minors and the effects of gender-affirming drug treatment are largely reversible.In an appearance Thursday on Tucker Carlson Tonight, however, Greene attacked gender-affirming care as “child abuse.” “When it comes to ‘gender-affirming care,’” she said with air quotes, “which is really child abuse, this is an assault that is actually child abuse, and this practice should never happen.
It’s so disgusting and appalling.” She spoke of “teenage girls having their breasts chopped off, teenage boys being castrated.” Carlson agreed with her, saying, “You can’t sexually mutilate children.” The bill would also ban the use of federal funds to pay for such care, including any funds involved in insurance plans under the Affordable Care Act.
And it would prohibit colleges and universities from teaching about gender affirming care.Greene said every Republican should sign on to the bill.