by Hayley Feland
Children’s Minnesota celebrated Gov. Tim Walz signing a bill into law last week that makes Minnesota a “safe haven” for children seeking puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones.
Two “kid experts” from Children’s Minnesota, a pediatric health care organization, were invited to “witness” the governor sign two bills into law.
“We are proud of Minnesota!” Children’s Minnesota tweeted. “We were proud to have Dr. Angela Kade Goepferd, medical director of our Gender Health program, and Dr. Katy Miller, medical director of adolescent health, witness this!”
We are proud of Minnesota! @GovTimWalz signed two bills into law that will help protect, support and care for LGBTQ+ youth.💙Two of our #kidexperts were invited to witness the signing of the bills that will ban conversion therapy and make MN a refuge state for transgender people. pic.twitter.com/fEIqHUMn3i
— Children's Minnesota (@childrensmn) April 27, 2023
The bills, which were promoted by Children’s Minnesota on Twitter, will ban the practice of “conversion therapy” and make Minnesota a “refuge state” for transgender children. Many Republicans pointed out that “gender-affirming care” is itself a form of conversion therapy and should also be banned for kids.
Almost every reply to Children’s Minnesota’s Twitter post was negative, calling “gender-affirming” practices “mutilation,” with some questioning how much revenue these bills will generate for the organization.
Goepferd is a pediatrician who works as director of the “gender health program” at Children’s Minnesota. In a September 2020 TED Talk, Goepferd posited that children as young as three can know they are transgender.
“It shouldn’t surprise you then that some transgender kids are claiming their identities as young as three and four years old. They know the categories. They know how they should feel inside based on their anatomy, and they also know the way that they see themselves doesn’t line up with other people’s expectations,” Goepferd said in the TED Talk. “From as young as some kids can talk, they’re explaining to their parents the truth about their identities.”
The gender health program provides puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and menstrual suppression drugs to children. The Minnesota Wild previously raised money for this program during its “Pride Night” last year.
Goepferd recently received QUEERSPACE collective’s inaugural “Youth Champion Award” for being a “steadfast advocate for the health and well-being of LGBTQ+ youth and families in the community, particular [sic] transgender and gender diverse kids.”
Goepferd has also pledged support for Rep. Leigh Finke, DFL-St. Paul, who sponsored a bill that would have removed language from existing Minnesota law stipulating that pedophilia is not a protected sexual orientation. A Republican legislator said Finke “yelled at and intimidated” her on the House floor when she tweeted criticism of the bill.
The legislation was amended and the language was replaced following backlash.
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Hayley Feland previously worked as a journalist with The Minnesota Sun, The Wisconsin Daily Star, and The College Fix. She is a Minnesota native with a passion for politics and journalism.
Photo “Tim Walz” by Children’s Minnesota.
