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To the Editor:

The West Hartford Republican Party has long been a strong supporter of LBGTQ+ rights and community. We feel that nobody should ever be marginalized or discriminated against.

However, the West Hartford Pride/Town Councilor/activist/lobbyist Barry Walters’ statement condemning CCMC and Yale New Haven Health hospital is extremely shortsighted and problematic. Condemning these two first-rate medical organizations without considering the mental health treatment of these children as a first option for parents is a ready-fire-aim reaction which seems to be the norm from Mr. Walters.

Children and teens are still developing emotionally; their brains, especially the parts responsible for long-term decisions, aren’t fully mature until their mid-20s. Research shows that many children with gender dysphoria outgrow these feelings by adulthood if not previously medically intervened, raising serious concerns about performing irreversible surgeries. Additionally, these procedures carry significant health risks – including infertility, loss of sexual function, and other physiological complications – and there’s insufficient long-term research on their impact for youth.

Many minors, especially those who came of age during the COVID era and suffered the socially harmful effects of the draconian lockdowns, are struggling with mental health issues that should be explored first, and it’s ethically questionable whether minors can truly consent to lifelong changes. Less invasive options should be emphasized instead, and at all times should occur with the parents’ prior informed consent(e.g., therapeutic sessions and if that fails, social transition), reserving medical interventions until adulthood when informed decisions can be made.

West Hartford Democrats are late to realize the damage caused by this ideologically driven, trendy rush to transition our youth, in no small part because of activists like Barry Walters’ commitment to pushing it on our children, sometimes even behind the backs of their parents. There are cases in West Hartford of parents being unaware their child’s name was changed (at school) to that of a different gender.

The United Kingdom, Sweden, Denmark, and several other countries have pulled back on providing life-altering hormone therapies and irreversible surgeries, encouraging mental health care first. Even so, “the science” has done little to change the minds of far-left activists like Barry Walters. The hospitals’ announcements this week that they would be ending their “gender-affirming” medical treatment programs for children is great news for the children of Connecticut, especially those who have been pushed into unproven and irreversible medical treatment for ideological reasons.  CCMC and Yale New Haven health have some of the greatest medical minds on staff, and we can be confident that these actions were not taken without substantial research and deliberation. As elected Republican officials, making sure our children aren’t being indoctrinated with this unscientific, politicized gender ideology in schools, and instead ensuring they have access to proper mental health care, will be a top priority of the West Hartford GOP.

Submitted by the West Hartford Republican Town Committee