We are at a time that requires a thoughtful examination of how we ethically care for and protect our children. Right now, in the United States, there are an estimated 13,000 people who started a pharmaceutical treatment as minors to block the natural maturation process of their biological sex. To date, there have been 11,000 gender reassignment surgeries performed in the United States, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. The surgical market is predicted to grow from the year 2020 value of $304.8 million to a forecasted $781.8 million in 2027. That is roughly a 14 percent growth rate over the next seven years. As demands are placed on this market, we can expect minors to be increasingly targeted for these lucrative interventions. We should be greatly alarmed by the fact that minors can access medical interventions to radically alter their physiology in an effort to “fix” gender dysphoria. This disturbing fact should garner our full attention and prompt us to act.
We are faced with a decision about how we will ethically and responsibly care for the distressed children of our day. What will our response be? Will we see beyond the current in-vogue theories and interventions of a constructed idea like gender dysphoria? Will we protect vulnerable children from being physiologically and psychologically marred by these harmful and unethical practices? Importantly, can we commit to searching for real answers to address the true source of our children’s pain?