New York governor Kathy Hochul (D.) kicked off New York City's annual "pride" parade Sunday by signing legislation making New York a "safe haven" for transgender youth seeking sex-change procedures.
With a growing number of states banning puberty blockers, hormone treatments, and sex-change surgeries for children, Hochul's new law welcomes out-of-state transgender children to receive such treatments in New York. New York law enforcement cannot disclose any information regarding a patient's "gender-affirming care"—a euphemism for cross-sex hormones and surgeries—to "any individual or out-of-state agency or department," nor will the state cooperate in any out-of-state investigation on the matter. Parents and doctors who support or provide such treatments are protected from any legal attacks in the state.
Hochul also signed legislation Sunday removing "outdated and stigmatizing terminology" from all state legal documents and mandating the state use gender-neutral language.
"As the birthplace of the modern movement for LGBTQ+ rights, New York is proud to protect, defend and affirm our LGBTQ+ community," Hochul said Sunday. "From Stonewall to Marriage Equality to GENDA, New Yorkers have been on the forefront of the fight for equal rights. Now, as other states target LGBTQ+ people with bigotry and fearmongering, New York is fighting back."
New York is not the only deep blue state to enact such laws. California, Colorado, and Washington allow minors to travel to their state to get transgender treatments or surgeries with or without parental consent, which legal experts say may violate the U.S. Constitution. While Democrats push "gender-affirming care" for children, Republican lawmakers in at least 19 states are raising concerns about the long-term harm these treatments may cause to a child's health and development.
Hochul also made changes to New York's Human Rights Law to "remove outdated and stigmatizing statutory language from the definition of 'sexual orientation.'" It now defines "sexual orientation" as "heterosexuality, homosexuality, bisexuality or asexuality, whether actual or perceived." The law also mandates that "any law, rule, regulation, or resolution" must use gender-neutral term "they," "them," and "theirs."
"As we celebrate Pride Month, I am proud to see New York remove the last vestiges of homophobia from our state law," Assemblymember Tony Simone said in a statement.