In the lead up to National Coming Out Day (Wednesday), Roswell’s Youth Day Parade (Saturday) and the Atlanta Pride Parade (Sunday) I‘d to talk about something very near and dear: The status of trans youth in Georgia.

It’s also an opportunity to talk about why my family and I made the decision to run for Georgia state senate district 56 in the first place.

Ellie and I have always encouraged our kids to be themselves—whatever that might be, as long as they don’t hurt themselves or others. This simple rule has launched more great conversations and experiences than I can count. It’s also given two of our kiddos the space they needed to explore who they are as young trans people.

Appen media covered our family back in May when our neighbor and state senator authored an anti-trans bill stripping our kids of lifesaving healthcare options. When asked by concerned citizens and journalists about the bill, Senator Albers and his co-author demonstrated a basic ignorance of the healthcare process for trans people—trans teens in particular. Their bill also targets and blocks non-permanent healthcare critical to helping trans kids deal with depression, anxiety, eating disorders, self-harm, and suicidal thoughts, while disregarding similarly-permanent gender-affirming options available to hetero children (e.g., plastic surgery).

Albers’ anti-trans law targets my kids. It endangers them. And when I—a constituent, neighbor, and former co-worker—tried to reach out to him about this issue, all I got was silence. And added to his newsletter.

Trans rights aren’t isolated only to a statistically tiny segment of the population. And trans people aren't some “other.” They’re my family. Their rights are my rights. And, frankly, trans rights are a canary in the proverbial coal mine. Albers’ attack on their personal healthcare freedoms reveals how fragile all our freedoms are in the face of ignorance and a lack of empathy.

I just want my kids to have all the freedoms and space they need to become their best selves. Those are the same freedoms I want, too. For all of us.

The meaning of LGBTQ+BBQ.

For those of us fortunate enough to have and to raise trans kiddos, it’s the Wild West. There’s no blueprint, non-ideological information can be hard to find, and—thanks the extreme-rights’s cruel culture wars—it’s sometimes challenging even to find support among family.

So, when a few parents of trans teens reached out in response to Appen Media’s article about state senator John Albers’ bigoted attacks on trans kids and families, we saw the opportunity to try and make our little corner of Georgia a better and safer place.

Ellie and I started a meetup (just down the street from Albers’ house, as Lily made sure was clear on our sign😅) where the parents of trans teens could meet up, learn from one another, and commiserate with peer parents navigating similar journeys; where our kids could safely socialize with other trans teens, their allies, and their siblings; and where we’ve occasionally brought in experts to help us all be the best parents we can be to an inspiring cohort of children under attack by the state.

We’re hosting another LBGT+BBQ in just two weeks (on Saturday, October 21)! To date, our invite list has grown organically by referral, but if you or anyone you know is the parent or family member of a trans teen—or is a trans teen, yourself!—please shoot me a DM or email and I’ll get you the details.

We’re all in this together, for our kids.

Y’all are safe here.

This October 11, 2023 is National Coming Out Day—a day for LGBTQ+ folks to be proud of who they are and for their loved ones and allies to show our support.

As allies of trans peoples—and of trans youth, in particular—there are a few things we can do to make the world a little friendlier and lot safer for those brave enough to come out to us as their authentic selves.

First, we can do our best to respect a trans person’s pronouns and name preferences. With kids, this can be really difficult. In many cases, we’ve been calling them other names and using other pronouns since they were born. But in our family’s experience, if you make a sincere effort and correct yourself when you slip up, even that clumsiness can become a show of support and create an opening to learn more.

Second, you don’t have to understand someone’s identity to respect it. Some people haven’t been exposed to transgender topics and many people have trouble understanding what it really means to be trans. And that’s okay. This is their journey, not ours, and we don’t have to fully understand it to respect it. Just be there. It’s the most important thing we can ever do for our kids.

Third, educate yourself. Ask questions—this can be a great way to show respect and to show that you're mindful of their needs and interests. And go online—The Human Rights Campaign, The Trevor Project, and The National Center for Transgender Equality all have great resources to help you support the trans people and youth in your life.

However you support the trans people and youth in your life, let’s make sure we show them the same respect we expect for ourselves. So that we’re all safe here.

Consistent. Insistent. Persistent.

Photo by Jiroe (Matia Rengel) on Unsplash.

When Ellie and I were first confronted with our kiddos’ transgender identities, we were unsure how to handle it. Is this play or experimentation? Or is this them discovering their genuine selves?

Not an easy question.

As most parents know, children aren’t born with an inherent sense of the masculine-feminine binary. And what adults sometimes see as gender-nonconforming behavior is usually just kids following their natural impulse to play and isn’t necessarily an indicator that a child is transgender or non-binary. Sometimes, lil girls just like playing with trucks and lil boys just like playing house.

But what we learned from some wonderful trans adults and gender experts is a simple rule of thumb that was tremendously clarifying on this issue and many more, too.

Anyone of any age might try out the trappings of alternate gender expressions for a time. But if a child is consistent, insistent, and persistent about their gender identity—whatever that may be—than they might very well be transgender or non-binary.

When you consider how inconsistent, fickle, and flighty most children are about most things (most adults, too!), this rule makes a lot of sense. If your kiddo is consistent, insistent, and persistent about anything, it’s likely something very dear to them.

And while the particular vocabulary and means of expression children use may change as they learn and grow—this is one of the many reason why classroom freedoms and free access to books are so important—we adults can divine the trends and themes they’re communicating. For me, it was enlightening to look back and realize how long they’d been telling me who they were, before they even knew the words I needed to hear.

Trans kids in Georgia face “Imminent risks.”

A demonstrator holds a sign during a protest rally after Georgia’s House and Senate voted to prohibit most medical treatments to minors that help affirm gender identity, outside the Capitol Building in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. March 20, 2023. Photo by Megan Varner/REUTERS

Georgia Senate Bill 140—effective July 1—bans most “irreversible” gender-affirming treatments for people under 18. The bill allows minors who were receiving treatment before the deadline to continue to do so, but it bans new minor patients from beginning almost any kind of gender-affirming care, regardless of the severity of their dysmorphia.

This anti-trans healthcare law is just one example of how moralizing legislators insert themselves into our private lives.

This past August, it briefly appeared there’d be relief. In an “Incredible victory for Georgia families,” U.S. District Court Judge Sarah Geraghty granted a preliminary injunction sought by several children, parents, et al challenging the ban.

The judge called out state health officials’ anti-trans bias and also found, “the imminent risks of irreparable harm to Plaintiffs flowing from the ban—including risks of depression, anxiety, disordered eating, self-harm, and suicidal ideation—outweigh any harm the State will experience from the injunction.” Thus, hormone therapies were allowed to resume.

Sadly, just two weeks later, Judge Geraghty was forced to stay her own injunction after the 11th Circuit upheld a similar restriction in Alabama. It’s unclear what comes next.

Trans youth in Georgia have very few healthcare options. Despite being safe and available for more than a decade and despite being part of standard protocols backed by groups like the AMA, lifesaving puberty blockers, hormone treatments, and surgeries are unavailable. Further, the doctors who might prescribe them are legally at risk. And the sensible and methodical healthcare journeys of thousands of young Georgians—journeys which begin long before any medical intervention—are derailed.

I don’t know about you, but my kiddos and I really don’t need Senator Albers and his co-sponsors in the doctor’s office with us while we’re receiving actual expert consultation. Let’s do more to protect trans kids from legislative bigotry by putting healthcare decision making back in the hands of doctors and parents.

JD JORDAN FOR GEORGIA STATE SENATE DISTRICT 56

For anyone in East Cobb, Roswell, or Woodstock alarmed by the state’s escalating attacks on our bodies, our families, our doctors’ offices, our classrooms and libraries, even our polling places, I’m running for state senate district 56 to fight for our freedoms and to deliver a better future for everyone in Georgia.

And unlike my opponent who’s spent 14 years rolling back our freedoms, failing to safeguard our kids, and gerrymandered his district to stay in office, I promise to bring everyone in the 56—regardless of ideology—the best possible constituent experience so you feel heard, valued, and supported. As we all deserve to be.

I’m running for the 56. Let’s make a better Georgia for all of us.

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FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT
Jordan For Georgia, LLC
10800 Alpharetta Hwy Ste 208 #629
Roswell, GA 30076-1467

jdjordan@forthe56.com
706.804.0456