Stephanie Mott: The Kansas Republican Party
Guest Column by Stephanie Mott
And ultimately, an ideology that says you can determine my gender identity is broken and is causing a lot of pain, and that’s why it’s important to bring us back to what we know to be true and good.
The Kansas Republican Party has lost its mind, and its heart, and its soul. Not that this is news in Kansas right now, rather more of a status quo, but if any doubt still remained, the recently approved resolution on “sexuality” removed any remnants of even the most basic humanity.
In case you missed it, KRP approved, by voice vote, this resolution completely inaccurate and horribly destructive to transgender and gender non-conforming (TGNC) Kansans, and then turned around and absurdly proposed it was the product of love.
The ignorance and ideology of the party is championed throughout the resolution and absurd is but one of the descriptors for the claims made within.
The resolution was brought forward by Eric Teetsel, who is president of the Family Policy Alliance of Kansas, a organization that repeatedly supports anti-LGBT legislation, opposes marriage equality, and attacks TGNC children.
This Teetsel quote is from the Wichita Eagle article about the resolution:
And ultimately, an ideology that says you can determine your own gender identity is broken and it’s going to lead to a lot of pain, and that’s why it’s important to bring us back to what we know to be true and good.
And I would say:
And ultimately, an ideology that says you can determine my gender identity is broken and is causing a lot of pain, and that’s why it’s important to bring us back to what we know to be true and good.
And how do we know it’s true and good? According to Lambda Legal, the American Medical Association says so, and the American Psychological Association says so, and the American Psychiatric Association says so, as well as every major medical and psychological association across the country.
In addition, the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry recently released a statement saying the following about conversion therapy:
These interventions are provided under the false premise that homosexuality and gender diverse identities are pathological. They are not; the absence of pathology means there is no need for conversion or any other like intervention. Further, there is evidence that “conversion therapies” increase risk of causing or exacerbating mental health conditions in the very youth they purport to treat
The resolution claims there is “no scientific consensus regarding the ethics or effectiveness of attempts to align one’s biology with one’s self-perception through experimental and exploratory medicine.”
Actually, there is complete scientific consensus saying TGNC identity is valid, and attempts to change a person’s gender identity are neither effective nor ethical. There is also consensus stating attempts to change a person’s gender identity lead to irreparable damage and increase the already-way-too-high likelihood TGNC individuals will attempt suicide.
The Kansas Republican Party has given up all defensible position they can be described as pro-life, pro-love, pro-family, pro-liberty, or pro-dignity.
The only hope I can find in this situation is perhaps you have finally stooped so low, we can begin to move back to a place where Kanas is seen as a state where we embrace the diversity of our citizens, truly represent all families, and lift up dignity.
Perhaps this will lead to the change we so desperately need.
We have much to do. Let’s do it.