A Texas jury has ruled against a father intervening in his seven-year-old son's gender transition, the New York Post reports.
Jeffrey Younger had been trying to get sole custody of his twin seven-year-old sons, Jude and James, in order to prevent James from beginning hormone-replacement therapy.
The boy's mother, Anne Georgulas, a paediatrician, believes James is transgender, claiming that he prefers to go by "Luna".
Meet Autumn Norris, formerly known as Anthony, a nine-year-old who transitioned to become a girl:According to the Washington Examiner, Georgulas managed to secure a letter of recommendation for James to "receive a full psychological assessment for gender dysphoria and potentially take hormone blockers."
The matter ended up in the courts when Georgulas filed a suit to restrict Younger's contact with the children, to have him refer to the child as "Luna" and to keep them away from anyone who refused to do so.
Younger responded by pursuing sole custody of the children, with expert witnesses testifying that the child's identity is still very "fluid" and friends of the father stating that James appears to identify as a boy, supporting Younger's argument that it was Georgulas' influence that has spurred desires in the seven-year-old to live as a girl.
"There is still some fluidity in his thinking," said Dr Benjamin Albritton, according to the Examiner. "Neither child appears to be depressed, anxious or aggressive . . . [James] gave no indications of other significant psychological difficulties."
In a podcast earlier this year with Christian political consultant Luke Macias, Younger referred to the way in which his ex-wife raises James as "sexual abuse":
"I want you to imagine having electronic communication with you son on FaceTime, and imagine that your ex-wife has dressed him as a drag queen to talk to you. He has false eyelashes and makeup. His hair has got glitter in it. He’s wearing a dress. Now imagine how you would feel seeing what I believe is actual sexual abuse – I believe this is not just emotional abuse but is the very, most fundamental form of sexual abuse, tampering with the sexual identity of a vulnerable boy."
While he lost the petition for sole custody, Younger can still prevent his seven-year-old from transitioning as the parents will have joint conservatorship over their child. This means that they will have to make joint medical decisions regarding their son, including whether James undergoes hormone replacement therapy.
