I fully support parental rights!  Schools are for academics and not social sexuality!

<!DOCTYPE html>

I fully support policies that give parents the right to make choices for their students inside our schools. Governor Youngkin‘s policies will allow for accommodations to those students whose parents have requested it. My child has a right to an academic education without being bombarded with sexuality social issues.


Strongly oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>Trans rights are human rights and why you think you should demand to have control over that is wrong. How about you focus on the bigger problems in the state of Virginia vs. spending time on a hate policy that helps divide us even more. </p>


Protecting Trans/ Nonbinary Kids

I am writing in opposition to the proposed document 2022 Policies on the Privacy, Dignity, and Respect for All Students and Parents in Virginia Public Schools. The reason is simple: LGBTQIA+ youth deserve protection. And this proposed document does not preserve the dignity and respect for ALL students - because it does not serve the privacy, the dignity and respect of LGBTQIA+ students, especially transgender and non-binary students. This document discusses at length the "rights" of parents and the rights of others in the school system (i.e. by arguing that any requirement to respect pronoun choice is a violation of the First Amendment). I do NOT see the rights of the students being upheld. Virginia Law upholds the rights of minors in healthcare. Virginia Law treats minors as adults for the purpose of consenting to a variety of mental and medical health services. [§54.1-2969, E]. Minors who do so also have the right to give or refuse to give consent to disclosures of their health care. While minors do NOT have the right to refuse access to their health records to their parents, if the provider determines that disclosure "would be reasonably likely to cause substantial harm," those records may be kept from parents [ibid., K]. Even here, the safety of the minor is legally more important than the rights of the parents.No such provision is included in this document. In fact, it is just the opposite saying, "school personnel shall keep parents fully informed about all matters that may be reasonably expected to be important to a parent, including, and without limitation, matters related to their child's health, and social and psychological development" (3). The reality is that the disclosure of sexual orientation and gender identity, unfortunately, represents a risk to minors who live in unaffirming homes. LGBTQIA+ youth are 120% more likely to experience homelessness than their peers. Roughly 7% of youth are LGBTQIA+, but they represent 40% of the homeless youth population. Family conflict is the driving factor, though not the only factor - leading kids to be kicked out or run away from their home. 30% of youth who are NOT out to their families cite unaffirming and unaccepting family at home - because of rhetoric that they already hear in their home. 16% cite the religious beliefs of their families. [https://truecolorsunited.org/our-issue/?gclid=CjwKCAjwvsqZBhAlEiwAqAHElerjOGzZgOk6J61Eh1NgdWo6b1LPyN5oJFL8z45xgKELJJe4f5AHCBoCEtkQAvD_BwE]My question is this: if a teacher who is unaffirming and refuses to use the pronouns of their students, how can that teacher be entrusted with the great responsibility of ensuring that such disclosure will not cause "substantial harm" to the student? How will a teacher know if the child in front of them is one of the 46% of youth NOT out to their families because of the harm they fear will come to them? What training will be offered that their own biases and personal beliefs will not influence their decision? What training will be offered so that teachers, regardless of personal beliefs (which they still may hold), have medical and psychological facts about gender and biological sex? What conversations will that teacher be expected to have with the youth to ensure their safety before disclosing such information to parents? What support is the State of Virginia prepared to offer kids who experience substantial harm from such disclosures?I write this as a pastor. I write this as someone who has a great love for God and for creation. As someone who wonders at the great complexity of humanity. In grade school, I was taught that having an xx chromosome made me a woman and an xy chromosome made my twin brother a man. Since then, I've learned that even those genetic components of "biological sex" are so much more diverse than we ever imagined. One can have an xxy or xyy set of chromosomes (or so many other variations) and present either typically male or typically female; and if genetic testing is never done (as is true for much of the population), one could never know that they didn't fit nice and neatly into xx or xy. Beyond the genetic markers of sex, any of the other markers (gonads, genitals, hormones) are similarly just as wonderfully diverse. The diversity of humanity just astounds me. And as a pastor, I believe that it is the work of our creator. Even if I wasn't a pastor, the fact would remain: these policies deny the diversity of kids and have the potential to do great harm. Katrina Karkazis, writing for the Lancet, writes this about how we misuse the idea of biological sex: "Science does not drive these policies; the desire to exclude does. This intentional gerrymandering of sex opportunistically uses the idea of “biological sex”—which lends a veneer of science and thus rationality to any definition—to remove certain individuals from a category based on intolerance... Those questioning simplistic understandings of sex—scientists among them—are hardly unscientific, but rather keen observers of the science of sex biology and the peculiar categorical gatekeeping of, say, soldiers and elite women athletes. This is not a case of science versus social constructionism as some argue; it's about the calculated use of 'biological sex' to buttress obsolete thinking about sex. Years ago I wondered, 'if one postulates bodies (including genitals, gonads, chromosomes, and hormones), what more does the word sex buy us?…The body as a material fact is given, but sex is not.' It is long overdue that we understand sex not as an essential property of individuals but as a set of biological traits and social factors that become important only in specific contexts, such as medicine, and even then complexity persists." [https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(19)32764-3/fulltext, emphasis mine.]In the 1960s, athletes were subject to physical examinations of their genitals to determine their "proper" placement in men's or women's sport. In the 1970's, it shifted to chromosomal testing. And it shifted yet again. By 2011, it shifted to testosterone testing - and women who had naturally high levels of testosterone were excluded from women's sports. By what metric are schools going to use to determine sex and whether or not particular pronouns should be used for any given student? Will parents be required to submit "proof" that a child's gender identity matches one or more of their biological sex markers before teachers will be required to respect their gender and use their pronouns?Isn't the simpler and healthier stance this: affirm and support kids? Shouldn't schools be a safe-haven for kids who aren't supported at home? Shouldn't we have a sense of humility and know that science and biology are more complex than we can ever imagine? And have a sense of humility and trust that kids know themselves better than any of us can? The outcomes are clear: when an LGBTQIA+ youth has supportive adults and systems around them have higher outcomes across the board, including mental health, physical health, and education outcomes (because mental and physical health have tremendous impact of school outcomes). For instance, over 60% of trans and non-binary youth have engaged in self harm and 52% had seriously considered suicide in the last year. LGBTQIA+ youth having at least one accepting adult were 40% less likely to report a suicide attempt in the last year. And that is a win. Gender affirming care lowered the odds of moderate to severe depression by 60% and suicidal ideation/ attempts by 73%. [https://www.apa.org/monitor/2022/07/advocating-transgender-nonbinary-youths]Putting adult comfort aside to protect our kids - especially our most vulnerable kids - that's how we protect the privacy, the dignity, and the respect of all students in Virginia Schools.

<!DOCTYPE html>

I am writing in opposition to the proposed document 2022 Policies on the Privacy, Dignity, and Respect for All Students and Parents in Virginia Public Schools. The reason is simple: LGBTQIA+ youth deserve protection. And this proposed document does not preserve the dignity and respect for ALL students - because it does not serve the privacy, the dignity and respect of LGBTQIA+ students, especially transgender and non-binary students.

This document discusses at length the "rights" of parents and the rights of others in the school system (i.e. by arguing that any requirement to respect pronoun choice is a violation of the First Amendment). I do NOT see the rights of the students being upheld.

Virginia Law upholds the rights of minors in healthcare. Virginia Law treats minors as adults for the purpose of consenting to a variety of mental and medical health services. [§54.1-2969, E]. Minors who do so also have the right to give or refuse to give consent to disclosures of their health care. While minors do NOT have the right to refuse access to their health records to their parents, if the provider determines that disclosure "would be reasonably likely to cause substantial harm," those records may be kept from parents [ibid., K]. Even here, the safety of the minor is legally more important than the rights of the parents.

No such provision is included in this document. In fact, it is just the opposite saying, "school personnel shall keep parents fully informed about all matters that may be reasonably expected to be important to a parent, including, and without limitation, matters related to their child's health, and social and psychological development" (3).

The reality is that the disclosure of sexual orientation and gender identity, unfortunately, represents a risk to minors who live in unaffirming homes. LGBTQIA+ youth are 120% more likely to experience homelessness than their peers. Roughly 7% of youth are LGBTQIA+, but they represent 40% of the homeless youth population. Family conflict is the driving factor, though not the only factor - leading kids to be kicked out or run away from their home. 30% of youth who are NOT out to their families cite unaffirming and unaccepting family at home - because of rhetoric that they already hear in their home. 16% cite the religious beliefs of their families. [https://truecolorsunited.org/our-issue/?gclid=CjwKCAjwvsqZBhAlEiwAqAHElerjOGzZgOk6J61Eh1NgdWo6b1LPyN5oJFL8z45xgKELJJe4f5AHCBoCEtkQAvD_BwE]

My question is this: if a teacher who is unaffirming and refuses to use the pronouns of their students, how can that teacher be entrusted with the great responsibility of ensuring that such disclosure will not cause "substantial harm" to the student? How will a teacher know if the child in front of them is one of the 46% of youth NOT out to their families because of the harm they fear will come to them? What training will be offered that their own biases and personal beliefs will not influence their decision? What training will be offered so that teachers, regardless of personal beliefs (which they still may hold), have medical and psychological facts about gender and biological sex? What conversations will that teacher be expected to have with the youth to ensure their safety before disclosing such information to parents? What support is the State of Virginia prepared to offer kids who experience substantial harm from such disclosures?

I write this as a pastor. I write this as someone who has a great love for God and for creation. As someone who wonders at the great complexity of humanity. In grade school, I was taught that having an xx chromosome made me a woman and an xy chromosome made my twin brother a man. Since then, I've learned that even those genetic components of "biological sex" are so much more diverse than we ever imagined. One can have an xxy or xyy set of chromosomes (or so many other variations) and present either typically male or typically female; and if genetic testing is never done (as is true for much of the population), one could never know that they didn't fit nice and neatly into xx or xy. Beyond the genetic markers of sex, any of the other markers (gonads, genitals, hormones) are similarly just as wonderfully diverse. The diversity of humanity just astounds me. And as a pastor, I believe that it is the work of our creator.

Even if I wasn't a pastor, the fact would remain: these policies deny the diversity of kids and have the potential to do great harm.

Katrina Karkazis, writing for the Lancet, writes this about how we misuse the idea of biological sex: "Science does not drive these policies; the desire to exclude does. This intentional gerrymandering of sex opportunistically uses the idea of “biological sex”—which lends a veneer of science and thus rationality to any definition—to remove certain individuals from a category based on intolerance... Those questioning simplistic understandings of sex—scientists among them—are hardly unscientific, but rather keen observers of the science of sex biology and the peculiar categorical gatekeeping of, say, soldiers and elite women athletes. This is not a case of science versus social constructionism as some argue; it's about the calculated use of 'biological sex' to buttress obsolete thinking about sex. Years ago I wondered, 'if one postulates bodies (including genitals, gonads, chromosomes, and hormones), what more does the word sex buy us?…The body as a material fact is given, but sex is not.' It is long overdue that we understand sex not as an essential property of individuals but as a set of biological traits and social factors that become important only in specific contexts, such as medicine, and even then complexity persists." [https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(19)32764-3/fulltext, emphasis mine.]

In the 1960s, athletes were subject to physical examinations of their genitals to determine their "proper" placement in men's or women's sport. In the 1970's, it shifted to chromosomal testing. And it shifted yet again. By 2011, it shifted to testosterone testing - and women who had naturally high levels of testosterone were excluded from women's sports. By what metric are schools going to use to determine sex and whether or not particular pronouns should be used for any given student? Will parents be required to submit "proof" that a child's gender identity matches one or more of their biological sex markers before teachers will be required to respect their gender and use their pronouns?

Isn't the simpler and healthier stance this: affirm and support kids? Shouldn't schools be a safe-haven for kids who aren't supported at home? Shouldn't we have a sense of humility and know that science and biology are more complex than we can ever imagine? And have a sense of humility and trust that kids know themselves better than any of us can?

The outcomes are clear: when an LGBTQIA+ youth has supportive adults and systems around them have higher outcomes across the board, including mental health, physical health, and education outcomes (because mental and physical health have tremendous impact of school outcomes). For instance, over 60% of trans and non-binary youth have engaged in self harm and 52% had seriously considered suicide in the last year. LGBTQIA+ youth having at least one accepting adult were 40% less likely to report a suicide attempt in the last year. And that is a win. Gender affirming care lowered the odds of moderate to severe depression by 60% and suicidal ideation/ attempts by 73%. [https://www.apa.org/monitor/2022/07/advocating-transgender-nonbinary-youths]

Putting adult comfort aside to protect our kids - especially our most vulnerable kids - that's how we protect the privacy, the dignity, and the respect of all students in Virginia Schools.


Strongly opposed to this transphobic policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>I am a Virginia resident with a son in the public school system (and two graduates from VA public schools). I strongly oppose these proposed policies which purport to be about parental rights but are truly about discriminating against trans students. These policies are not in line with state law and will do harm to transgender and nonbinary children. Public schools should be safe spaces for all students of all gender identities. In a perfect world, all children would have loving parents who support them as they figure out their true identities. Unfortunately, we don't live in a perfect world and many trans/nonbinary children are harmed emotionally and physically by their parents because of who they are. </p>


Proposal is garbage.

<!DOCTYPE html>

This proposed guidance is a piece of shameless bigotry, put forward by a governor desperate to advance his own political career and avoid doing anything to improve Virginians' actual lives. It's total garbage.


Youngkin student policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

Strongly oppose Youngkin's cruel and illegal student policy! Trans rights are human rights!


Strongly Oppose?Model Policies for treatment of Transgender students in VA Public Schools

<!DOCTYPE html>

Transgender are people too! They have strong feelings and are brave enough to follow those feelings.

They should be respected like any other individual.

The "Model Policies" are designed to embarrass them and and has impossible regulations to prevent them from  just being themselves.  The "Policies" are  obviously Prejudice and Ignorant. This is as ignorant as forcing a left handed person to learn to write right handed.

WE are better than this. Our Church welcomes Transgender individuals. They  are as normal as anyone else.

Signed :

Retired Commander US Navy. Viet Nam Veteran


Oppose: support parental and individual rights

<!DOCTYPE html>

This policy, which is discriminatory at its heart and elevates the right to be cruel over the right to live your life, is also a dangerous threat against the right of parents who affirm their child's identity to raise their children in the way they best see fit.  This policy would drag Virginia backwards and has no place in the Commonwealth.  Our resources as a state have much better uses than bullying children.


Youngkin's Bigotry Proposal against Trans Kids

<!DOCTYPE html>

STRONGLY APPOSE MORE BIGOTRY FROM   REPUBLICAN YOUNGKIN.  NO!!


Supports Everyone

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>sex specific spaces are not transphobic </p>


<!DOCTYPE html>

let children be comfortable in their own identity’s stop taking the rights away from trans kids and lgbtq children


Strongly oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>It's tragic that we are still having the same conversations over and over again. When we will learn to treat others (including trans kids) with respect regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, etc. It is not about your own opinions, beliefs or values, this is about validating and respecting the person in front of you. Trans kids just want to be seen and heard when so many, including their families, shame them. Give them a safe space and you will watch them flourish and save lives, reject them, turn them away and you'll be digging their grave. </p>
<p> </p>


I oppose!! Trans kids matter like everyone else

<!DOCTYPE html>

I do not think this is fair AT ALL, this is basic human rights and you do not have the power to do something like this. Your hatred for lgbt youth is not going change anything, it will only make us stronger. Do better


Strongly Oppose, these children are going through enough. Let them live their truths!

<!DOCTYPE html>

Horrible policy, these children already face struggles on a day to day basis with their own identities. Government has no place dictating how people live their lives. These children shouldn't have to hide who they are because some politician is living in the 1800s and can't accept change


Whose "Parental Control?"

<!DOCTYPE html>

When you compare the current policy with the previous document, you see a shift from supporting transgender students (and their parents) and protecting confidentiality to one that emphasizes "parental control." The previous policy emphasizes that transgender students have made decisions with their parents; the current policy presumes a transgendered student who is sneaking this identity and being abetted by the school district against their parents' wishes. I suspect it also emphasizes support for parents who are worried that if some parents allow their kids to express a non-biologically assigned gender, their own control of their children will somehow be undermined. (Note how many of the comments state that parents should be punished for allowing their children to switch genders; "parental control" doesn't really matter to these folks their control does.) It also seems designed to support teachers who don't like the idea of kids not identifying with their  biological sex. And...of course, fear of the "transgendered bathroom predator"/and limiting the discomfort some will feel with non-biological boys or girls using bathrooms. The new policy claims to support parental control and oppose bullying, but just saying "we're against bullying and for parental control," while starting from a deep attitude of suspicion of transgendered students and their parents demonstrates none of that concern. The policy needs to be rewritten to be more supportive of students and of the parents who support them.


It is a good thing to require parents to be involved

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>This policy allows for transgender students to do any/every thing the previous policy allowed.  The difference is this policy requires parents to be fully aware and involved. I can see no reason to oppose.  Students should be discussing major life choices with their families.  If they feel threatened at home the school is obligated to report the situation. </p>


Support

<!DOCTYPE html>

There have already been instances of this policy causing harm for young female students, it’s prudent to protect their rights to spaces for them.


I STAND WITH STUDENTS

<!DOCTYPE html>

I STAND WITH THE STUDENTS WHO ARE WALKING OUT


Support


Parents rights

<!DOCTYPE html>

This is giving stronger rights for the parents of kids that are attending public school while also giving power to individual school boards to vote on the decisions that best serve their community.

Full support


Education

<!DOCTYPE html>

I strongly and enthusiastically support these proposed changes. Do you remember the backlash over concerned parents being called "domestic terrorists"? There is an army of moms and dads including my own family that are ready to take their children out of public education if they cannot exercise God given stewardship over their own children. Schools have no business "parenting" our children against our wishes, and parents have every right to both "parent" and "school" their kids. Thank you.


Trans rights are human rights.

<!DOCTYPE html>

Granted, this country has made it clear that it doesn’t care about human rights, either. But facts don’t care about your bigoted feelings.


OPPOSE

<!DOCTYPE html>

Do not force CCPS staff to out trans kids to their parents. Trust trans kids to know when their safety may be at risk. Trust staff to know when a student may not have a safe situation at home. And trust that any parent who is howling about how "their rights come first" are probably *the same people* trans kids are scared of.


I stand with the student walkout

<!DOCTYPE html>

I STAND WITH THE STUDENT WALKOUT


Oppose - strongly oppose!

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>I’m strongly against the newly proposed transgender laws in VA schools. </p>


Staunchly Opposed

<!DOCTYPE html>

As so many other policies and actions that individuals and leaders like Gov Youngkin are championing, this proposed new guidance is a step backwards for our community and for our state.

People are taking about the "rights of the parents" but what we need to consider, as a collective, is that many youth are not accepted by their parents, have not yet come out to their parents, do not feel welcome or community within their family unit. As educators and those who are meant to have vested interested in youth, why would we want schools to be in the position to make trans youth feel less welcome and less safe in their own homes.

We often talk about schools being a safe haven for marginalized youth - where they find peers and teachers who see them in a way they do not feel seen or validated in the greater world. This guidance is putting un-warrented, unneeded, and undeserved oversight capabilities to schools. It is an intentional step to further marginalize and harm trans youth and a stepping stone to continue to allow for harm for other marginalized populations.

I strongly, strongly object to this guidance which calls for the misgendering and outing of children in schools where they’re supposed to be safe.  Shameful.


Opposition to Updated Policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

While I understand and support restrictions on teaching young children about transgender and sexuality, I think this policy change is discriminatory against transgender students. Teachers should not be shaping and molding young minds who do not fully understand the concepts being introduced. However, if a student, especially in high school, does identify as transgender, then we need to support them. I can understand the bathroom restrictions, but to deny pronouns or a chosen name is the discriminatory portion of the policy. Why can I call a student named Michael "Mike" or Christopher "CJ" or Henry "Hank", but cannot call a transgender student a nickname of their choice? We either need to honor all nicknames or we cannot use any nicknames for any student. Pronouns effect no person outside of the student and help teachers to build stronger, caring relationships in a time where they are needed, especially for vulnerable populations like transgender teenagers.


This policy will harm children

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>I strongly oppose the provisions of this policy.  As the grandparent of a trans child I am very aware of how difficult life can be for trans children.  My grandchild is fortunate to have supportive parents, good medical care, and a supportive school environment, but that is not always the case.  How and when a child discloses to anyone should be 100% up to the child, regardless of age.  This proposed policy can only be harmful to children.  If parents are not aware that their child is trans, then it may be because the child believes they would not be supportive if they knew.  It may be because the child knows they would not be supportive.  It's not up to school personnel or anyone other than the child to decide when and how parents should be involved.  Also, why would anyone think it's OK to stigmatize a child by using an incorrect name, incorrect pronouns, or incorrect gender because of something that was on a birth certificate created years ago?  Don't teachers call students by their nicknames all the time?  </p>


Strongly oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>I strongly oppose this attack on students. </p>


Oppose. Use statistics and data rather than fearmongering

<!DOCTYPE html>

I oppose. But let's not just leave it there. Let's break this down a bit.

First, let's start with just a couple of excerpts from the guidance document:

1. "The Virginia Department of Education (the “Department”) recognizes that each child is a unique individual with distinctive abilities and characteristics that should be valued and respected. All students have the right to attend school in an environment free from discrimination, harassment, or bullying. The Department supports efforts to protect and encourage respect for all students. Thus, we have a collective responsibility to address topics such as the treatment of transgender students with necessary compassion and respect for all students."

This policy does offer valuing and respecting individual characteristics of students, but only when approved/initiated by a parent. Obviously in homes where the student feels safe to raise identity concerns, this is great. But as evidence from many of the comments here from unsupportive adults, it's not hard to tell that many homes are not safe havens to have these discussions. Hence, this policy lacks the respect and compassion transgender and nonbinary students need at an essential time of their development.

2. "The Department embarked on a thorough review of the Model Policies Guidance adopted on March 4, 2021 (the “2021 Model Policies”). The 2021 Model Policies promoted a specific viewpoint aimed at achieving cultural and social transformation in schools. The 2021 Model Policies also disregarded the rights of parents and ignored other legal and constitutional principles that significantly impact how schools educate students, including transgender students."

Provide data to support this claim. What were the specific findings of the thorough review? How were parental rights disregarded? How many parents filed complaints or lawsuits? What specific legal and constitutional principles were ignored? How was/is the 2021 Model Policies significantly impacting schools and students?

As a society, we should always look for ways to improve ourselves, our environment, and create methods that support a better experience for the next generation. Communicate actual facts and statistics as to why this policy must change. Without specific data, the three sentences for reference #2 above lack substance and cause those of us who truly want to understand and find common ground to lose respect for you and your administration.

Given your absence of statistics to support the change, let me offer some for you:

According to Public School Review, there's an average of 672 in VA public schools. And according to Pew Research, 5.1% of U.S. adults between the ages of 18 - 29 are transgender or nonbinary. Using that statistic as applicable for children under the age of 18, that would be 34 students on average per school that would identify as transgender or nonbinary.

I'm sure that some of those 34 students would have incredibly supportive homes in which to gain their parent's approval to initiate documentation with the school to be acknowledged and respected under this new policy. But I'm equally sure some of those 34 students would not have a supportive and understanding space at home to have these discussions and thereby would not be supported in schools as they are now.

So then we must ask ourselves why VA can't leave the 2021 policy in place, one that goes the extra mile to actually show compassion to those most marginalized? Is it really because we're afraid of how 34 students might affect the other 638? Seriously? Why not flip that and see it as a policy that encourages 638 students/families to show 34 students/families that they're welcome and supported?

As for all the fears about danger to the majority of the student body, I suggest you truly think about the dangers. For one, where are the statistics from the past year to support the fear is rational? Second, we risk way more harm to each other when we continue to marginalize others, not just in schools, but in society in general. Lastly, what about the fears of continuing to shelter children from the realities of a diverse culture? We can't put blinders on to what we don't want to see and think that's the answer. It's not. And attempting to do so strategically sets your children up for failure in the long run.

I'm not transgender and I have no idea of how it feels to navigate that reality, but I do know that in my home and heart, we make space for the lived experiences of others and always seek to be allies.

For those who are marginalized and read this comment, know that there are so many of us here in VA seeking to make space for you. You belong in all the places you seek to be.

The next generation is already way more loving and accepting of differences than most adults these days. I can't wait until they start running for office.

Sources:

https://www.publicschoolreview.com/school-size-stats/virginia

https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2022/06/07/about-5-of-young-adults-in-the-u-s-say-their-gender-is-different-from-their-sex-assigned-at-birth/


Support Parental Rights

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>Children who are feeling transgender confusion, need the support and love of their parents. They do not need identities and agendas pushed on them from schools. Parents have the right to inform schools what the child's gender and name is. This is not something a student gets to just decide back and forth on each day. That creates more confusion for the child, the school and their friends. Bathrooms need to be more separate also so protect all our children. I want my teachers to teach, not talk about sexuality and pronouns. It's gone way off course. </p>


Support Parental Rights


Strongly Oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

Not only is the proposed change hurtful to children, it assumes parents won’t know their child is trans or nonbinary. If they don’t, then they aren’t paying attention. Meaning they are pretty crappy parents already. If the “school” (whoever that might be since right now there is no designated outer for each school) has to tell the parent, then that parent(s) who is already in denial, will be ever so receptive to the news, wont they? Won’t they now be joyful to lovingly support the child in a meaningful way? Or will they more likely bully their own child?

This rolling back the 2021 policy is being done solely for political points, not for the welfare children.


Stop using vulnerable children as political pawns

David Walrod, Fairfax County Federation of Teachers

<!DOCTYPE html>

Governor Youngkin thinks he is attacking school boards and educators.  In reality though, he is attacking children.  He’s attacking the students in the LGBTQ+ community, denying their identities, and attacking them as people.

Members of the LGBTQ+ community come out at their own pace and their own readiness.  For many in the community, coming out to their family is a treasured memory, an opportunity to grow closer, and a beacon of support.  For others, being open about who they are has led to being condemned and turned away. This phenomenon is the reason that 40% of the population of youth experiencing homelessness identify as LGBTQ+ and why the suicide consideration/attempt rate among LGBTQ+ youth is twice the number of “straight” teens.

It should be a student’s choice as to when and how they come out to anybody, including their families. As educators our job is to provide a safe learning environment for all of our students, including students who are LGBTQ+. Fear mongering and hate should never get in the way of standing up for folks who are marginalized.

Stop using children as your political pawns.  Stop attacking a group that already faces extreme challenges.  To paraphrase Joseph Welch, lawyer in the McCarthy hearings,  "Until this moment, Governor, I think I never really gauged your cruelty or your recklessness.  Let us not assassinate these students further, governor. You have done enough. Have you no sense of decency?"


Everything I disagree with is bigotry and fascism

Sincerely, unthinking Democrats who destroy everything they touch

<!DOCTYPE html>

Because words no longer have meaning.


Oppose the policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

I oppose this policy. Respect transgender students.


Rights for all

<!DOCTYPE html>

Please, Please, Please!!  As a child from the 60's I recall the prejudice and hate that inspired the Civil Rights Movement.  How easy it is to label, blame and criticize those who are different from ourselves.  Everywhere we hear that the youth of today need mental health help but we as a community are failing and failing big.

Transgender, non-binary, pansexual, homosexual, and heterosexual are all conditions of humanity and need to be treated with dignity and humility.  Even if you don't believe that they are a naturally occurring condition ALL people need to be treated with dignity.  Why is it such a big deal to use the pronouns or bathrooms that make a person comfortable?  Many parents support their children during this time and if they are on board with it why can't the school system?

Let's all at least agree that we need to treat each other with respect.


Concur with proposed policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

All children should be treated with respect. Biological males and females should not be sharing bathrooms, locker rooms or hotel rooms on overnight field trips.  Children are children.  They are not decision-makers.  Parents should absolutely be informed if a child prefers to go by a different name/pronoun and make the decision as to whether that happens.  The school/government is not an equal partner with parents.  Parents have the primary responsibility for their children.


Opposition to this policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

This policy seems to start from the premise that transsexuality is a problem that needs to be eradicated, not a legitimate condition that needs to be addressed with compassion, respect, and support fro the individual. This sort of retrograde policy will serve no legitimate good, and has the potential to cause irreparable harm to the most vulnerable Virginians. Please follow the lead of the Rockingham County School Board and reject this regulatory policy.


Strongly Oppose!

<!DOCTYPE html>

This policy is dangerous and discriminatory! Youngkin is using this culture war issue as a stepping stone in his political career at the expense of vulnerable children. He said on video that he couldn’t imagine when involving a parent in these issues would be harmful. His ignorance was on full display. How does he imagine LGBTQ youth get kicked out of their homes to live on the streets? If these fragile parents are so scared their children will be exposed to an issue that exists whether they admit it or not, they can homeschool or send their kid to private school with similar bigotry. The public school system exists to teach and expand a child’s lived experience to match the world they live in. To make them good citizens, capable of compassion for those that struggle. The policy does not represent the Virginia we should all strive for!


Support 100% Parents Rights

<!DOCTYPE html>

Parents should always be aware of what is going on with their children. Until they are adults a parent has their choice over their child's education and other factors. This is just common sense it has nothing to do with transgender rights. This is an issue of parental rights that has disappeared. When the child becomes and adult then they can do as they wish. If they disagree with their parents then they can go through the courts to get emancipated and prove to the court they can sustain themselves financially and other requirements. Parents have duties to guide and teach their children and have the choice of how to care and teach them. Not informing a parent of what is going on is ridiculous and goes against what is not only natural but the legal rights all parents and guardians have.


Lets not do this

<!DOCTYPE html>

Can we stop trying to go back to the dark ages.  Let people be.  I oppose restricting the rights of transgender students.  They should be allowed privacy as well as personal agency. Their chosen pronouns  need to be respected.
I believe this bill should be trashed, because it is extreme overreach on personal liberties we are all afforded.


These policies will SAVE LIVES!

<!DOCTYPE html>

We do NOT need any more suicides from children being misguided by the state. These new policies need to be implemented as soon as possible to protect children from harm.


Appalling and uncaring change in policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

This policy change would go against a large body of research that demonstrates that policies of inclusion and acceptance are far better for children and schools. This proposal is a shameful attack on an extremely vulnerable population of actual people, not talking points.

The argument that supporting an inclusive environment in a public space somehow infringes on parental rights is nonsense.

We require racially and culturally inclusive language and support in a school environment regardless of an individual’s personal or religious beliefs, parental or otherwise.  That is /not/ compelled speech, that is just being part of functioning in a diverse community.  LGTBQ+ children are not hypothetical, the are just people and deserve to be treated with the same respect and support.

Do not implement this policy change. It will actively harm vulnerable children.


oppose policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

At my birth my parents named me Dean Timothy Jost.  When my dad announced my birth, my Aunt Suzie said, "we will call him Timmy."  Finally, at about second grade, I said, "stop calling me Timmy"  I am so glad I didn't have to go to court to change my name.

I imagine adopting this policy is an important step for Younkin to attract MAGA supporters for his run for president.  It is unfortunate that to promote his campaign he has to promote divisiveness in Virginia.  Trans kids have a rough life already.  Younkin's policies will make their life harder.

Why can't Younkin use his position to promote the welfare of all Virginians, rather than trying to divide us?  We have enough real problems to deal with.


Strongly Oppose Proposed Transphobic Policies

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>I am a Virginia resident and I strongly oppose these proposed transphobic policies. These policies are not in line with state law and will do harm to transgender and nonbinary children. Schools should be a safe space for all students of all gender identities. These proposed policies are despicable and inhumane and would be an absolute disgrace if they were to move forward. </p>


Oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>The proposed policy does not align with the best practices suggested by mental health professionals and educators. It does not have the students' best interests at heart, and is blatant political pandering to adults at the expense of children's health and safety. The research shows that allowing children to be themselves has positive mental health benefits, while policies like the ones proposed would in the worst case cause extreme harm. </p>
<p> </p>


do not support

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>i feel like this is so wrong because us people should be able to do what they want and come out when they want i strongly disagree </p>


No to bigotry.

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>This action will endanger our youth who are vulnerable to bullying and to harming themselves. This would not make Virginia a better state to live in a raise families. We will be moving backwards in regards to human rights. I strongly oppose. </p>


Fully opposed.

<!DOCTYPE html>

Schools play an important role in supporting the mental health and safety of their students and that includes their transgender and nonbinary students. All students have the right to feel safe in school. The 2022 policy proposal disregards transgender and nonbinary student privacy and dignity and puts their safety and wellbeing at risk.

Please stop using hatred, misinformation and fear against a small, vulnerable group for your political advantage. As the state's Board of Education, please focus your energy on creating safe, strong and informed public education for all students in Virginia.

I strongly oppose this policy and ask that it be withdrawn.


No to bigotry.


And one more thing…

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>Proponents mention constitutional rights…there is nothing in the constitution that specifies which name, pronoun, or restroom a student should use at school. Respecting the individual liberty of a student at school does not infringe upon the parenting or religious rights of anyone. Perhaps parents who have that concern need to ask their faith leaders how to have compassionate conversations with their kids about how to accept people who they perceive as different from them and to navigate life without fear. </p>


Strongly Oppose!

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>Strongly Oppose! </p>


I strongly Oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

Please stop making things harder for our children. Let them be who they want to be so they can grow up to become amazing people who give back to our state.

Youngkin is driving our state backward at an alarming rate. We will not stand by and watch this happen. #holdtheline


Completely Opposed: Children are human beings, not their parents property

Parents are not endowed with the right of ownership over their child, children are human beings and as such they too deserve equal rights. The right to bodily autonomy and self identification is not magically given to you when you graduate high school, you have them from the moment you are born.If a child is queer and/or trans their parent has no say in this, they have no right to force their own ideals onto their children. Far far far too many parents in this country hate trans and queer people, and their children see this hatred and know that they can never let their parents know the truth about who they are. If that child has the strength and courage to ask a teacher for help in this situation, it is the teachers moral duty to support and protect the child. Outing a child to their parents ruins their lives, it leads to children in conversion camps, it leads to dead kids.
Parenthood does not grant you special rights OVER your children, it gives you special responsibilities TO your children. The responsibility to love and support them, the responsibility to care for their health, the responsibility to set aside your own bigotry and help your child grow to their full potential. If a parent has failed so spectacularly to gain their own child's trust and respect that their child needs to seek help from a teacher instead of them, then that parent has absolutely no right to use the government to circumvent their child's decision and forcibly out them.As for the students across Virginia that are marching today in opposition to this evil policy, they have nothing but my complete support. The young understand that all people are equal, its us old people who lie to them and teach them to hate. I pray every day for an end to this moral panic against transgender people so that these children may finally know peace. Please, stop listening to the hate mongers and start listening to your children. Clinging to bigotry will only lead to more needless pain and suffering.

<!DOCTYPE html>

Parents are not endowed with the right of ownership over their child, children are human beings and as such they too deserve equal rights. The right to bodily autonomy and self identification is not magically given to you when you graduate high school, you have them from the moment you are born.

If a child is queer and/or trans their parent has no say in this, they have no right to force their own ideals onto their children. Far far far too many parents in this country hate trans and queer people, and their children see this hatred and know that they can never let their parents know the truth about who they are. If that child has the strength and courage to ask a teacher for help in this situation, it is the teachers moral duty to support and protect the child. Outing a child to their parents ruins their lives, it leads to children in conversion camps, it leads to dead kids.

Parenthood does not grant you special rights OVER your children, it gives you special responsibilities TO your children. The responsibility to love and support them, the responsibility to care for their health, the responsibility to set aside your own bigotry and help your child grow to their full potential. If a parent has failed so spectacularly to gain their own child's trust and respect that their child needs to seek help from a teacher instead of them, then that parent has absolutely no right to use the government to circumvent their child's decision and forcibly out them.

As for the students across Virginia that are marching today in opposition to this evil policy, they have nothing but my complete support. The young understand that all people are equal, its us old people who lie to them and teach them to hate. I pray every day for an end to this moral panic against transgender people so that these children may finally know peace. Please, stop listening to the hate mongers and start listening to your children. Clinging to bigotry will only lead to more needless pain and suffering.


I strongly oppose the proposed regulatory changes.


Support trans youth, one of the most vulnerable demographics being attacked for no reason.


Disgusting policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

Gov Youngkin and the DOE,

This proposed policy is dehumanizing, inhumane, and wholly about fomenting contempt within the commonwealth’s schools. Instead of viewing expanding ideas of gender roles and presentations as a way to empower children and communities,  you are using your power to traumatize and abuse the children whose education it is your duty to provide. The Commonwealth  has a duty to provide a free, appropriate, public education to all its children. How can you possibly purport  to do that when you simultaneously threaten a child’s bodily, emotional, and mental integrity? It’s disgusting that the ideas of backwards, bigoted adults are ruining education for the Commonwealth’s children. You should all be ashamed of the absolutely cruel treatment you are demanding children be subject to.


Supporting Parents and Kids is Possible!

<!DOCTYPE html>

Let’s stop accusing parents of being hateful bigots who have no compassion or capacity to understand their child’s struggles. When a child is experiencing anxiety or depression or, in this case, gender dysphoria, the solution is to involve parents, not remove them from the conversation. Promoting secrecy does not help a child’s mental health—it only perpetuates a stigma.  The vast majority of parents want to support their child’s well-being. This policy guidance stresses openness and compassion. The pronoun issue should also be addressed in this manner.  We can’t force others to betray their own knowledge of male and female biology.  But, if a certain pronoun makes someone feel less than, sad, or angry, don’t use it. Addressing someone by their name or nickname should be agreeable to all. Sad that this has become such an issue that Virginia has to write policy guidance in attempts to restore sanity.


Privatize education and keep the government/Democrats as far away from children as humanly possible

And I won't be forced to pay for your kids' education? Brilliant!

<!DOCTYPE html>

Stop letting the left near children. Nothing else needs to be said.


I strongly oppose this transphobic policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

Gov. Youngkin's policy is going to lead to increased depression and suicidal ideation amoung trans kids. Scientific studies have shown that addressing kids by their preferred names and pronouns leads to decreases in depression and suicidal ideation amoung transgender children. "Transgender youth who were able to use their chosen name in multiple contexts reported fewer depressive symptoms and less suicidal ideation and behavior." - Russell, et al. Journal of Adolescent Health. 2019. Students should be able to learn in a safe environment and not face discrimination due to their gender. Youngkin's proposed policy is transphobic and a slippery slope to further discrimination.


STRONGLY OPPOSED

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>I am strongly opposed to any legislation, accords, bylaws, rules, or standards which serve only to inconvenience and oppress trans youth, ESPECIALLY in our schools that are supposed to be providing an education and formation for our children; not making their lives harder and grinding them under heel with ridiculous policies that cause them to be ostracized and outed to bullies and horrible adults who have nothing better to do than punish children for expressing their truth. </p>


Do not support!  Oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>Please do not support this. Strongly oppose. </p>


Protect Trans Students - They have rights!

<!DOCTYPE html>

The proposed changes to DOE policy related to trans students is discriminatory and imposes the personal/religious opinions of others upon students potentially causing enormous harm to the students.

I am opposed to these policies because there are inherently biased against students who do not conform to society's "norms." Trans and LGBTQAI students need our understanding, patience, kindness and love, NOT judgement.

Students deserve to have THEIR rights respected without having a legal document from parents expressing permission for the student's preferred pronoun, name, identity to be recognized by schools. Does the school need consent for me to be recognized as a white, binary, heterosexual female? Under what authority does a school have to require parental consent for something so personal to a human being? The school isn't going to ask parents' permission to call a hetero, binary student by the name on their preferred name? What if my binary student prefers their nickname "Bubby"? Is the school going to require me to send in a permission form for my child to be called by their nickname?

STOP putting your religious views on others.

LOVE and PEACE to our trans, LGBTQAI and all students.


Dangers of Social Contagion

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>"Social transition" is an insidious, dangerous fad that has taken off like wildfire among today's youth. They are being conditioned by social media and activist educators that transitioning is "cool". It leads children straight into the hands of money-hungry big Pharma, who can't wait to cash in on the fad. Parents MUST be informed.</p>


Dangers of Social Contagion


Proposed regulations

<!DOCTYPE html>

The proposed regulations are total crap and obvious discrimination.  Bullying, even when instituted by elected officials, is still bullying and endangers many youth.  Stop it, please.


This policy will kill

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>Very proud of the youth in VA protesting a deadly policy by an irresponsible governor. We’ll do e! I’m </p>


Strongly Oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

If this policy passes, children will be harmed and children will die. The statistics regarding self-harm and violence against trans youth are real. A trans child's home is not necessarily a safe place for them but a school can and should be. Shame on you for attempting to put teachers in a position to harm children. SHAME ON YOU.


Don't you have better things to be doing?

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>Why is the party of "Small Government" so concerned with what toilet a child sits on? Are we seriously legislating bathrooms? The intention of this policy is to cause harm and strife with no discernable improvement to education. It is a burden on teachers to enforce and police this when they are already stretched thin. What an absolute waste to time. </p>


This policy will kill


The transgender policy put in place that harms the transgender community

<!DOCTYPE html>

The transgender policy that is being put in place by the VA Governor is bigotry and harmful to those young children that we should be protecting.  It is an awful abuse to our children in this state and needs to be abolished.
Beth Lynn


THANK YOU FOR PROTECTING ALL STUDENTS!

<!DOCTYPE html>

The time has come to protect all students. Thank you, Governor Youngkin, for implementing parental rights and putting the student's health and welfare as a top priority!


Opposed to Youngkin policy against transgender studentship

<!DOCTYPE html>

Gov. Youngkin has new policies in regard to transgender student rights. His policy negates the Human Rights of these students, and the freedom, liberty and pursuit of happiness guaranteed I. The US Constitution. A student's gender is a personal matter and school officials should not be involved in interfering in that. This policy has to be rescinded and tabled indefinitely.


Proposed changes to LGBT rules in education

<!DOCTYPE html>

The proposed rules, while alleging to give parents more control of their child, actually represents a naive understanding of 'parents'.  Your model does not reflect the reality that a number of parents would simply punish a child who is struggling with their sexuality or even throw them out of the house. Yet, this happens.  Then who is going to support that child?

The policy as written also reflects a naive understanding of the entire spectrum of gender issues. It harms those students who are not stereotypically male or female.  How sad!  The authors cannot force a child who is misgendered into compliance with their stereotype of sexuality by policies such as these.

There are wonderful, loving parents who support their children.  Possibly you believe that all parents are like them.  As a Virginia resident who taught high school for 20 years and served as a college administrator for another 20, I have first-hand knowledge of parents who are loving and supporting and of parents who are fearful and cruel.  Your policy puts the children of latter type of parents in harms way.

Please do not adopt this policy.


I strongly oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>I strongly oppose this regulation. It discriminates against young people when they are most vulnerable and imposes the view of a few in our state on those who are struggling to figure out where they fit in society. </p>


Strongly Oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

More than half of transgender male teens who spoke with the American Academy of Pediatrics in 2018 had tried to kill themselves. About 30 percent of female trans teens had, too. Those statistics hold for much of the past decade.

This alone is reason to step back and assess the true damage a policy like this will inflict.

School should be a place where your child is welcome and encouraged to be the person they are not some version that the government thinks they should be.  Teachers need to focus on teaching, encouraging kids, not policing or snitching on them.


This is a terrible policy decision.

<!DOCTYPE html>

This is a terrible policy decision.


Strongly Oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>All students deserve to be treated with dignity and respect, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identification.  </p>


Schools ARE NOT Parents!

<!DOCTYPE html>

I am strongly aligned with Governor Youngkin's new policy. Teachers and the school system ARE NOT parents and have no right to encourage or even discuss sexual preferences or politics inside schools. They need to concentrate on educating our children for the future, NOT turning them into social justice warriors for the left-wing political agenda. It has become obvious that schools are more concerned with a racist agenda and social and emotional learning and social justice than preparing our kids for their futures. We know this as the testing stats have fallen drastically. It is time for a change. Time to get back to common sense and stop this grooming and concentration on sexual identities, pronouns, and other left-wing policies. While our schools and the Biden Administration are pushing ridiculous pronouns, the Chinese are educating their children in STEM and the US is being left behind. WAKE UP!!


Oppose


Acceptance and accountability

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>As a parent, we want our children to grow up in an environment where they feel safe and confident. I have read many comments about bathroom sharing. I understand that there is a fear that sharing a bathroom in public with the opposite gender is dangerous but yet I fail to see the stats on the danger. I think if you are concerned about what’s going on in the bathrooms then maybe the design of the bathroom is an issue. We use public restrooms all the time shared by both genders and I would be more concerned to see a man/dressed as a man in a room designed for humans who identify as female then the someone who identifies and dresses as a woman. All bathroom violence in a school setting I’ve ever heard about is not trans related but rather straight violence and bullying. Perhaps a bathroom monitor ? Fear mongering without proof of threat is not a way to protect all children. Give the children the tools to handle situations and be accepting and accountable for their actions. </p>


Do not implement policies that put transgender and nonbinary students at greater risk.

<!DOCTYPE html>

Transgender and nonbinary children face a great deal of danger in our society. They are bullied, denigrated. Some are not even safe at home. School should be a place where they are safe, accepted and respected. The proposed policies force them to conceal who they are and prohibit teachers from respecting their identities. There is no room for bigotry in the schools. Do not implement these phobic policies. It is shameful that they are proposed at all.


Very Strongly Opposed

Data tells us that "82% of transgender individuals have considered killing themselves and 40% have attempted suicide, with suicidality highest among transgender youth."https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32345113/This is one of the many, many reasons why these proposed policies are unacceptable, and will absolutely lead to more dead children.  Some of these kids' only solace is being able to be themselves in a protected environment away from parents that may be overbearing or abusive towards LGBTQ tendencies. The Department of Education will find itself on the wrong side of history if this proposal is approved.

<!DOCTYPE html>

Data tells us that "82% of transgender individuals have considered killing themselves and 40% have attempted suicide, with suicidality highest among transgender youth."

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32345113/

This is one of the many, many reasons why these proposed policies are unacceptable, and will absolutely lead to more dead children.  Some of these kids' only solace is being able to be themselves in a protected environment away from parents that may be overbearing or abusive towards LGBTQ tendencies. The Department of Education will find itself on the wrong side of history if this proposal is approved.


Gender Idenity is a Mental Illness! Stop brainwashed parents

<!DOCTYPE html>

Boys should never play with girls in competitive sports. What was the point of Title IX when you allow Will Thomas to become a NCAA female champion? We need to protect the majority and not allow the minority to push the New World Order ideas onto children. Democrats are ruining this state and country everyday. The kids need help with their mental illness and need support to get better. These parents are brainwashed by media sources that tell them false science. Homosexuality is a natural evoultion of the human species that allows for reproduction to slow down in areas where resources are limited and not able to provide for more people


STRONGLY OPPOSE. Trans rights are human rights

<!DOCTYPE html>

This is unethical. Trans rights are human rights. Protect our youth.


Agree with this new legislation

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>Agree with this legislation, government overreach, parents kept in the dark. It should never have come to this point I believe. </p>


Model Policies for the Treatment of Transgender Students in Virginia’s Public Schools)

<!DOCTYPE html>

I STRONGLY OPPOSE.  I fully support TRANS youth and insist on keeping them SAFE.


I strongly oppose these changes

<!DOCTYPE html>

I went to school in Virginia in the 80s and 90s. I knew I was transgender then -- I just didn't think there was anything I could do about it. I'm certain there would have been zero support for me if I had come out at 16 in 1992, and I hate to think what school would have been like. It's the environment I was educated in that Youngkin's new policies seek to recreate. I'm a transgender person who went through all of this, and I can tell you now, all these suppressive policies do is create psychologically damaged youth who suppress their truth in order to survive, and lose years of potentially productive adult life while they try to unlearn all the toxicity that was force-fed them as kids. I knew I was trans at 16 and didn't come out until I was 39. I hate to think how much more I could have gotten done if I'd had support from the beginning, how much time and experience I lost while I was just trying to get back to what I'd already known for so long. Don't do that to a new generation of trans kids. Don't impose this policy.


New transgender policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>Strongly oppose this extreme policy. </p>


Best Policy Decision

<!DOCTYPE html>

I salute our Governor for what he is doing and putting our children at the front of education and not CRT, wokeness, transgender nonsense.  I have seen the ill effects of not teaching our children real education and pushing CRT, wokeness, transgender, etc.  Virginia use to have a great education system, but look at it now under the Democrats of the last four years; our math, English, reading, etc scores have dropped like a rock, and teachers think they are the only authority and the parents should have no say so in the education of their children.  I guess the "great teachers" have forgotten who pays their salary.  Maybe we should pay the teachers in public schools after comparing students in private schools their grades.   Whoever has the best grades gets paid and those who don't, do not get paid.  I think that will stop this nonsense about CRT, transgender, wokeness, etc.  I can only hope that our Governor continues to rid our educational system of this disease called wokeness, CRT, etc that is destroying our children.  All parents and aunts and uncles and grandparents should be up in arms to stop this as it is our children that will suffer long term.  Keep pressing Governor and don't look back, and thank you for having the courage to do this.  It is so refreshing to have a real leader again in Virginia after suffering through four years of weakness, no leadership that was honest, double talk, wokeness galore, etc.   Go Governor!

.


Support LGBTQ youth at school - oppose the change

<!DOCTYPE html>

The VDOE should not implement changes that put trans youth at further risk of harm. They should be allowed to use the name, gender pronouns, and restroom of choice—even if it means making all restrooms gender neutral. We should focus on destigmatizing using the restroom and focus on body positivity. Further, we should reject dog whistle politics that suggest non-binary and trans youth are some how putting other people in harm’s way, violent, or seeking to sexually assault someone. They just want to present as their authentic sleeves without judgement and there is no shame in that authenticity presenting as something other than a sex organ. There are many reasons people present as they choose, including biology, fear, shame, abuse, and more. All of these are reasons to strengthen protections for LGBTQ and all youth rather than reduce them. LQBTQ you carry a higher risk of suicide and “outing them” and shaming them only increases the risk of harm. Some kids only feel safe at school and do not have loving, supporting and understanding parents. By outing them to their parents, there is a risk of increased domestic violence. As a family and psychiatric nurse practitioner who works with adolescents, I strongly urge you to base this decision on the principle of doing no harm and look to consensus statements in adolescent health about these issues rather than playing partisan politics and pandering to “parents have the right to protect their kids” against what is not subtly portrayed as deviant “Others.”  Oppose this change and support all youth, including LGBTQ youth. **I not authorize reproduction of this statement without explicit permission.**


Common sense returns to Virginia..

<!DOCTYPE html>

Gender and Pronoun "bullying" have been going on in Virginia schools for years interfering with the objectives of tax-payer supported public education.  It's long overdue for commonsense to return to Virginia schools and for teachers to teach reading, math, writing, history and science.  Parents have the responsibility for engaging their children in conversations of personal identity.  Third parties are not a part of the conversation unless they are licensed professional counselors....not history teachers!


Thank you Gov Youngkin

<!DOCTYPE html>

It’s sad that the state wanted to keep parents in the dark over their own child’s lives. The state does not control your kids. Thank you Gov Youngkin for fixing this injustice. Now parents can get their children the mental health care needed to help their children get away from this indoctrination.


Strongly Opposed to the New Policy - Support Trans Students

<!DOCTYPE html>

I strongly discourage the Virginia Department of Education from adopting this new 2022 policy, as it would only endanger the safety and wellbeing of queer, transgender, non-binary, and gender non-conforming students in Virginia. It enables faculty, staff, and administrators to discriminate against queer students, and open them up to harm by outing them to their parents or guardians. How open a student is with their parents about their sexuality or gender identity is not just a matter of respect, but also safety, and this policy would force students to choose between hiding in the closet or risk their mental, and potentially physical, safety. As much as I wish every parent were supportive of their children when they come out, that is not the world that we live in. This policy would also discriminate against those parents who are supportive of their children's identity, which seems counter to this administration's supposed support of parent's rights. Even if a parent is supportive of their child, teachers can choose to discriminate students, regardless. So please, I implore you to reject this dangerous policy and keep the 2021 policy in place.


I VERY Strongly Oppose this Policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>I can not stress enough how much I oppose this and any policy that strives to ostracize any group but especially this policy that targets children at a critical age in development.  Growing up is hard enough, but with these hateful policies you create an environment where instead of feeling included and accepted, children feel alone and unwanted.  By not only not accepting young people for who they but also making them feel unwelcome in schools you create young adults who suffer from mental health issues.  This is not at all what we should be striving for in our school systems.  We should be encouraging children to become their best selves not tearing them down and trying to make them into something they are not.  This policy is hateful and should not be allowed to go forward.  </p>


How can you consider your party pro life when you enact policies that directly lead to youth suicide

<!DOCTYPE html>

Oppose. Protect trans kids!


Strongly opposed

<!DOCTYPE html>

There is no good justifiable reason for this hateful and I'll conceived rollback of protection for trans students. I am a Virginia native, homeowner, 20+ year military spouse and Christian and am strongly opposed to Governor Youngkin's policies towards trans students

This is a gross misuse of his power and a disgrace to our beloved Commonwealth.


This is completely outrageous

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>Everyone should have the same opportunities as everyone else. Just because they aren’t the “norm” doesn’t make them any less different than anyone else. They’re still human, they still bleed red. And how they identify shouldn’t cost them their educational rights, or any rights for that matter. This is more harmful than it is helpful since there will always be trans people in our society so long as we have specific gender roles. We should be moving forward with making history, not backward. And taking away rights from a specific group of individuals is moving backwards. </p>


Vehemently oppose gender identity ideology & its harming our youth.

Certified Life Coach working with parents, teens & detransitioners

<!DOCTYPE html>

I have seen firsthand how this harmful ideology has severed children from both biological reality and their own families. Vulnerable teens with mental health comorbidities, ADHD or ASD are being led astray by the undue influence of social media, peer contagion, political agenda and individuals with bad intent.
Vehemently opposed.


Leave trans kids alone, nationalists are disgusting people

<!DOCTYPE html>

Honestly christian nationlists can try to get everyone to conform all they want but we not going for that . Yall need to stop inserting religion everything. Yall need to stop the harmful legislation towards cis women/trans men and trans kids. Hopefully this will all be over but until then  Glenn Youngkin we voting him out point blank period ,had enough of his fascist .

Most of his voting base ain't read a book since they left middle school so they're very easy to be manipulated.

Virginia for Communism ?


Whose "Parental Control?"


Strongly Oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

I strongly oppose this updated guidance from our governor. It seeks to reverse policies that were originally put in place to protect those who are marginalized and traditionally discriminated against in our society: LGBTQ people. The previous policy was one that seeks to protect those who have no protection at home. The proposed change removes this protection in the name of "protecting parental rights." The issue has always stemmed from LGBTQ minors who are beholden to their parents' beliefs which can be very negative influences on their development. The previous policy sought to give these minors a relief in school, a place which has been set aside as a place of learning. By giving them this relief, the LGBTQ minors were able to express themselves without fear of punishment for being who they are, which in turn allows them to learn better, develop more sincere friendships, and prepare for life. All of which they were unable to authentically do without the protections put in place. The new policy seeks to erase that protection by requiring that the parents of the minor give express consent for their child to express any sort of individuality or identity that is different than the societal norm regarding which genitals they have. Some students would not be affected, as they have parents who understand science and human development. Those students would continue to be nurtured, while students who do not have that would be chastised, punished, and forced to conform to their parents' wishes even if it is against the student's personal beliefs. While seeking to advance the rights of parents, this policy tells students that they are nothing more than a vessel for the wishes of their parents and are allowed no choices themselves without their parents express permission. This goes contrary to every peer reviewed study regarding human development and seeks to set the state backwards decades over the progress we have made in recognizing that everyone deserves to be who they are. Gov. Youngkin is using these marginalized children as nothing more than political pawns, willing to sacrifice their mental and physical well beings as well as their educational futures in order to make a political statement and gain brownie points with his conservative base. Doing so is reprehensible and is even more so when the new policy directly goes again all of the scientific research regarding those who this policy affects. Stop being a coward and using children as political pawns, instead protect them and their futures!


Oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>I oppose this action.  The real issue our "education governor" should be addressing is what to do about the active shooter hoaxes that terrified students in schools across the commonwealth over the past few weeks.  Rather than doing his job at home, he's out campaigning across the country for radical candidates.  </p>


Stop the proposed changes to existing policies for trans children

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>I'm disgusted by the proposed changes to policies regarding transgender and nonbinary children.  Let the existing laws remain.  This is younkin at his worst, pandering to the base of the republican party. </p>


Oppose


this policy is evil, strongly oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>forcibly outing trans kids WILL cause abuse and death. please think about what you’re actually doing. you’re violently attacking children just because you don’t like their gender. in what universe is this moral? i strongly oppose this bill, as should anyone with any sense of decency. </p>


This is a deadly policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

Transgender students need support.  This is not how you support them. This policy will indicate that they are less than whole and not accepted by our society.  Children will die. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32345113/


Strongly opposed to hateful policy that targets trans kids

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>The proposed policy puts all transgender kids at risk. Under the guise of "parent choice" this guideline strips transgendered students of their rights to a safe public education and puts them at risk of bullying at school and unsafety at home. And what about parents who support and love their transgender kids for who they are?  If this policy is enacted those parents LOSE THEIR CHOICE to have their child receive appropriate accommodations at school. This is not parent choice. This policy is aimed at targeting some of our most vulnerable individuals in our schools. Do better. Forget this ridiculous policy. Act in the BEST INTERESTS OF THE CHILDREN, not your right wing think tank.  </p>


I oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

I strongly oppose the policy. I believe it will bring actual harm to trans and nonbinary kids.


Trans rights

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>The laws you are attempting to pass are vile and greedy.  You are killing trans kids, them expressing their identity is not hurting anyone like how lack of gun rights and hate do.  So why go out of your way to destroy a chance for someone to feel safe and be themselves especially when they can’t at home. There are real issues going on that need to be fixed and that is supposed to be your job to do instead of being apart of the problem. </p>


Don't Let Bigotry Into VA Schools

<!DOCTYPE html>

This proposed action is absolutely abhorrent and is an attack on transgender youth. It frames itself as a way to extend "parental rights" while only making it harder on parents of transgender or genderqueer students to have the basic dignity they require. The blanket bans only serve to demonize transgender teenagers and violates multiple discrimination laws.


transgender polocies

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>We strongly support this! </p>


Strongly oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>I strongly oppose the current governor’s plan to target LGBTQ+ students and withdraw protections from students who currently identify as trans. These draconian policies are going to end up harming children. So much for republicans wanting small government. </p>


In opposition of model policies that would turn back the clock on human rights in VA.

<!DOCTYPE html>

I am a lifelong Virginian and a mother of 2 children in VA schools. I believe that these new guidelines would roll back our policies protecting transgendered students by:

Compelling school staff to “out” transgender students, likely exposing students to emotional and physical abuse from unaccepting parents; (school is likely the only place these students feel safe to be freely themselves)

Disregarding students’ genders and force them to use school facilities and programs matching their birth sex;

Creating additional barriers for students to change their names and genders at school; and

Allowing staff and students to bully and harass transgender students by not using their names and pronouns. Misgendering students is incredibly harmful to their emotional well-being. (while still dealing with the mental and emotional fallout from the disruption that the pandemic created, this will be an emotional health disaster)

These changes will put vulnerable transgender and nonbinary students at further risk for bullying and harassment.

As a former VA Public School Student, I know too well what the effects of bullying and harassment can do to a child that doesn't "fit in" with the gender normative stereotype. The fact that gender fluid humans have been around since the beginning of recorded history and we are still debating on how to treat humans as humans is ridiculous and speaks volumes to the lack of growth mindset that is our current time.

We need to protect our children, all of our children, and thus, future citizens of the commonwealth. These children will remember how they were treated and those experiences will have ripple effects in the decisions on how & where they choose to be engaged adults.

Thank you for your time.

MCR


Strongly Oppose This Dangerous Policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>I strongly oppose this dangerous policy. It is contrary to our state law and will be extremely harmful to children across the state of Virginia. </p>


Equality for All Students

<!DOCTYPE html>

My comment concerns Governor Youngkin's proposed school board policy for trans students.

As a nation that takes great pride in equality for all, why treat minority students as if they are second class citizens?  As a second class minority, trans students are discriminated against in many ways.  This proposed policy only makes the discrimination greater.

In addition to being unconstitutional, via the 14th amendment, it will be impossible to enforce.  A major quote from the 14th amendment is, "... nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." Will we need security guards outside all school restrooms?

For a conservative governor, this is the epitome of government over reach.

I am very opposed to this suggested policy.


Trans kids deserve agency

<!DOCTYPE html>

It is important to the development of trans kids that they exercise their right to free expression and free speech. Children should not be punished for requesting that  teachers and students respect their choices in how the are addressed.

Forcing children to conform to archaic doctrines is against the principles of free speech and america cannot claim to be a free country so long these rules exist.

There is nothing sexual or dangerous about a child changing their name or terms of address. The only outcome of the current rules are traumatised children who believe that the right to freedom of speech and free expression does not apply to them.


Strongly Oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

Strongly oppose Youngkins new policy. It's trash


I Oppose these changes

<!DOCTYPE html>

I reside in the Ashland District of Hanover County VA. I am the mother of three school age children. My children do not identify as Trans. My father is a service-disabled veteran and a family with a rich tradition of military service. I have lived in Virginia for 15 years. I love our community, I love our children. I value my rights as a parent to empower our children to feel safe. Our School Model Policies need to be supportive of all children regardless of race or identity. The previous policy did just that. The proposed changes will bully those in need of our protection and prevent support in our schools.


transgender crap

<!DOCTYPE html>

You are what your original, documented, unedited Birth Certificate states. Male or Female, no other variation. Any changes are nothing but left wing, sick, perverted crimes against nature. Any Doctor who does any of these so called "procedures" should lose their license forever and be sent to prison for at least 15 years. Any Parent who promotes this disgusting, un-Godly agenda to any minor under 18 years old  should lose their parental rights and also be sent to prison for 15 years.<img src="data:image/gif;base64,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"/>


Support

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>I think we have bigger issues to focus on in our school systems. As a parent I want my kids focus in school to be on education not social awareness of another person’s decision as it relates to their life choices. </p>


If you can call Samuel "Sam" and Patricia "Patty", you can handle being respectful to trans people

<!DOCTYPE html>

It isn't that hard to just be respectful. If you're so concerned about your beliefs being respected, maybe consider whether you're being respectful yourself.


Strongly Opposed to Proposed Changes

<!DOCTYPE html>

The changes to the model policy proposed by Governor Youngkin are discriminatory and will cause substantial harm to our children, and I wholeheartedly oppose them.  I am additionally disgusted by those who claim they speak for all parents on this matter. I am a parent. I oppose these proposed changes. These "parent rights" groups and politicians do not speak for me. Parents are not a monolith. To claim these discriminatory propositions are based on "parent rights" while speaking over other parents in the process showcases their own hypocrisy.

These changes will put children's lives in danger. The Fairfax County Youth Survey's data clearly shows that transgender students are attempting suicide at higher rates than their peers, report higher levels of constant stress than their peers, and report higher levels of depression.  60% of transgender students who participated in the survey have considered suicide in the last year. 60%. And that is with the introduction of policies that protect them. How can Governor Youngkin purport to protect life when he introduces policies that will threaten the lives of children at even greater rates than already exist?

The data speaks volumes. These proposed changes aren't based on data, they're based on hate, fear, and discrimination. It is our job as parents, adults, and human beings, to keep our children safe.  The law the general assembly passed in 2020 is clear. Governor Youngkin's election does not give him the power to ignore existing laws and put our children at risk. End this hateful, dangerous proposition now before children pay the price for this bigotry.


Strongly Oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

I thought we elected a Republican. What is with the horrid, communistic overreach into our schools. I don't want Democrats telling me how to manage bathrooms, and I don't want republicans telling us how to operate our schools. Focus on the economic issues and get our of telling us how to parent our children or how they should be treated in school. Let kids be kids and get back to important policy.


Strongly oppose - this policy will lead to deaths

<!DOCTYPE html>

I am strongly opposed to this plan. Youngkin's discriminatory practices will lead to self harm and suicide among trans kids who desperately need to be protected at this vulnerable part of their life. Please, stop panicking about youth sports and understand that this is a matter of life and death for young people in Virginia.


Strongly oppose this dangerous policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>I am an alumna of Fairfax County Public Schools and a 20+ year resident of Virginia and I stand with LGBT+ students to oppose this policy change. Rates of suicidal ideation and suicide attempts are significantly higher among trans youth than their cisgender peers, and trans youth who are outted to their families against their will suffer significantly higher rates of homelessness than their cisgender peers. These policies will hurt and kill children. Furthermore, these policies are likely illegal and in violation of settled Virginia law including Grimm v Gloucester County Schoolboard. In a time where our education system nationwide is shedding experienced teachers at record rates, forcing compassionate educators to out or misgender their students will only hasten the decline of public education in Virginia. </p>


Protect our Youth

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>Personal and religious morals have no place in our school system when it’s dedicated to stripping the rights away from others. This decision will impact the mental health and lives of countless teenagers and their families. </p>


Transgender & LGBTQ students

<!DOCTYPE html>

I am opposed to this policy as it is regressive and cruel. Young people questioning their sexual identity and trying to determine their way in life is something that should be between them and their families. The "state" should have nothing to do with this. This policy will do nothing but penalize educators and cause these already marginalized students to be further ostracized. This is creating a culture war for political means, and doesn't impact a large swath of the student population. But what it does do is single out already vulnerable and marginalized kids for bullying and persecution. Just allow people to live their lives.


Strongly Opposed

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>Keep this bigoted hate out of Virginia. Republicans love to be the party of freedom and small government until they are the ones in charge using the government to tell free people how to live their lives. Stop attacking trans students and let them live their lives. Take your hate somewhere else. </p>


Opposition to Policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>Anyone who supports this should be ashamed of themselves. Parents are viewing children as pawns/property, not individuals with their own choices. Yes as a parent you can want what’s best for your child, but bashing educators & administration for advocating for their students isn’t the way to go. You should be embarrassed your children do not feel safe enough in their own home to share who they are with you without the fear of violence or hate. This policy not only takes away their right to be who they truly are at a core, but also tells them once again they do not matter. “Children are the future” is a quote commonly used & just because the future of being more diverse is frightening to the older generation does NOT mean change isn’t coming either way. The younger generation will be who they are going to be, trying to change them will only alienate yourself from being a part of the greatness they will bring. </p>


Boy, it’s sure is easy to post comment after comment here - 24/7 woke activists making bank!

<!DOCTYPE html>

Give the left credit, they know how to spam on an issue where they have maybe 20% of the electorate.


Strongly Oppose

<!DOCTYPE html>

No sexual information should be shared, discussed, or promoted in a public school setting period. This is a parental responsibility and only parents have the right to talk about sexual issues with their children.


Keep the 2021 Guidelines

Oh Virginia,You did a decent job with creating trans-friendly guidelines for schools and now want to just throw it out? Pretty sure they’ve already decided to do that… but it’s open for public comment.
Essentially the 2021 document says “Schools shall eliminate the practice of segregating students by gender to the extent possible.” Etc for 27 pages.
While the new 2022 document contains this gem: “Practices such as compelling others to use preferred pronouns is premised on the ideological belief that gender is a matter of personal choice or subjective experience, not sex. Many Virginians reject this belief.” Blah blah blah everything shall be decided by biological sex.
So yeah… I am opposed to this change despite the new document going on and on about parents’ rights.

<!DOCTYPE html>

Oh Virginia,
You did a decent job with creating trans-friendly guidelines for schools and now want to just throw it out? Pretty sure they’ve already decided to do that… but it’s open for public comment.

Essentially the 2021 document says “Schools shall eliminate the practice of segregating students by gender to the extent possible.” Etc for 27 pages.

While the new 2022 document contains this gem: “Practices such as compelling others to use preferred pronouns is premised on the ideological belief that gender is a matter of personal choice or subjective experience, not sex. Many Virginians reject this belief.” Blah blah blah everything shall be decided by biological sex.

So yeah… I am opposed to this change despite the new document going on and on about parents’ rights.


Oppose this policy

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>The Governor is out of touch with the needs of his constituents. Not every trans child is going to have an understanding/supportive family. </p>


Look at me spamming away


Policy Extremely Harmful! Transgender Rights are Human Rights

<!DOCTYPE html>

Our family strongly opposes the governor’s backward, hateful policy towards transgender students! All children have a fundamental right to go to school without fear from retaliation, cruelty, hate…regardless of sex, gender, color of skin, economic background, religion…and this governor wants to continue the political wave turning back policies that begun during the civil rights movement. Where will he stop?

Transgender rights are human rights. Whether it be transgender children or transgender adults, every individual has the fundamental right to be treated with kindness and respect and this policy is rooted in pure hatred. You can’t regulate kindness but please teach it to your children so they don’t grow up to emulate the people advocating this hurtful policy.


A step in the right direction!

<!DOCTYPE html>

First I think it’s a reasonable and measured policy.

My only concern is that there is no enforcement mechanism.

What school divisions and teachers unions and critical queer theory act of us are already organizing student walkouts during school time to protest this.


Please think this through...

<!DOCTYPE html>

Children who identify as trans do so at a young age.  They sense the disconnect early and by being forced to identify as someone they aren't (because their body doesn't align).

It would be better to help children early to understand that there is great diversity in our communities and that who others are does not need to impact who you are.  Trans isn't a fad, or a phase.  Many parents disown trans children.  Those who advocate for them have lived with them and fully see and understand what is going on.

Remember that not everything is subject to God's original design for humanity.  Babies are born with both sex organs and other congenital physical challenges.  It isn't safe for them to assume we know what is happening in their identity and self image.

If  you believe in Trauma Informed Care please stop traumatizing trans children.  Give them a safe space just as you would other children who have differences.  Put in a single toilet that isn't gender specific.  Teach children to accept each other without mocking or criticizing.  Help them learn to love.  That is what Christianity is all about but the politicians have totally lost connection with the teachings of Christ.  We are not to decide who is good enough to be valued and who isn't.  We need to accept truth and love unconditionally.

Thank you for considering the children.  They are our future.  We will continue to have children and teens acting out if we continue to suppress their voices.


Parents for Youngkin !


I fully support it!

<!DOCTYPE html>

The schools should follow the legal classification of the student and not what they feel they are on a given day.  If the student wants to think about changing, they need to discuss with their parents, their family and their religious leaders.


Policies for treatment of transgender students in VA schools

<!DOCTYPE html>

I agree with Gov. Youngkin’s submission to change these policies. We have successfully navigated existence for thousands of years with two sexes, assigned physiologically at birth.

if someone wants to change their own sexuality, they can do it on their own time and their own dime. This is not something that needs to be addressed and certainly not promoted in the schools that I fund.


I support

<!DOCTYPE html>

<p>I completely support, kids are vulnerable and they need the parents guidance, not the school, not the government </p>


Strongly Opposed

<!DOCTYPE html>

As the mother of a trans child, I am strongly opposed to these model policies.  School is supposed to be a safe and supportive place for all students, especially those that may be marginalized in other aspects of their lives due to living as their true selves.  If a child feels strongly enough about who they are to take the step to come out as transgender, asking to be supported by using their affirming name and pronouns is the least educators can do.  What we should be doing is using their preferred name AND offering them in school counseling, gender neutral bathrooms and sports policies that provide access to activities consistent with their gender identity.  These new policies will create an even more hostile and dangerous school environment for transgender and non-binary youth who already face bullying and hostility.  First and foremost, these are kids!  Being shaped by our communities!  All children thrive and prosper in positive, loving, safe spaces and school should absolutely be one of those places.  I as a parent, who has a right to be involved and empowered in my child's education am strongly opposed to these changes to model policies involving transgender and non-binary kids.