Proposed Missouri bill would make teachers register as sex offenders if found supporting transgender students who socially transition

Encouraging the Light Wellbeing (ELW), and its allies, are committed to disrupting and dismantling policies that harm an individual's mental health and their basic right to exist as an authentic human being.  

The new Missouri bill, HB2885, introduced in the Missouri House by Jamie Gragg (R Ozark), discriminates against Trans youth. It denigrates them by positing the unmistakable message that their lives do not matter.  

More than half of transgender male teens reported attempting suicide in their lifetime, while 29.9 percent of transgender female teens said they attempted suicide. Among non-binary youth, 41.8 percent of respondents stated that they had attempted suicide at some point in their lives. Pulling resources as punitive measures, including shutting off teachers and counselors who are trusted adults will exacerbate an epidemic of suicide, suicide attempts, and suicidal despair. Those lost young lives will traumatize families and their loved ones.

New Study Reveals Shocking Rates of Attempted Suicide Among Trans Adolescents

Jamie Gragg and other House members who vote for this bill will be sentencing Trans youth to death. The cruel, barbaric, and careless nature of HB2885 will reverberate to other states who want to quash the existence of Trans youth.

ELW will not stand by for murder. We will not stand by and witness Jamie Gragg and others like him to impose fascism on innocent youth. We will not stand by while Jamie Gragg is willing to invoke unnecessary hardship and death nefariously.   

There are many excellent resources for Trans youth. For example, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation has a Welcoming Schools program. If bill HB2885 passes, any teacher or counselor who utilizes resources such as this in supporting Trans youth would be branded as a “sex offender.” HB2885 will end the careers of intelligent, caring, and compassionate teachers. ELW encourages Welcoming Schools to support Trans children.

This bill creates a chilling effect for teachers, staff, parents, and students. Many transgender students rely on teachers and counselors for support with mental health challenges, especially depression and anxiety.  

ELW does not support the new bill HB2885 filed and introduced in the Missouri House by Jamie Gragg (R-Ozark). 

This draconian bill would make it a Class E felony for teachers and school counselors to provide support for the “social transition” of a child. A social transition is the process by which an individual adopts the name, pronouns, and gender expressions, such as clothing or haircuts, that match the individual’s gender identity and not the gender assigned at birth.

ELW will fight for the mental health and wellbeing of every Trans youth. 

Timothy Bishop, Founder/Executive Director

Steven Serba, Assistant Director

encouraginglightofwellbeing.org