A self-described Christian British couple have shocked many by taking their objection to gender diversity to a new level—suing the British government because their child's classmate was allowed to wear a dress to school.
Nigel and Sally Rowe—backed by Christian advocacy group the Christian Legal Centre—are filing suit against the U.K.'s Department for Education over its adoption of their local area's transgender inclusivity initiatives, claiming the experience of seeing a student wearing a dress damaged their son.
The Rowes discussed their suit in a video, seen below, made by U.K. extremist organization Christian Concern, which is also supporting their legal case.
WARNING: transphobic and homophobic hate speech
The Rowes first made headlines in 2017, when they removed their son from their local Church of England-affiliated primary school on the Isle of Wight because he was "confused" about a student in his class who would sometimes dress as a boy and sometimes as a girl.
The Rowes had previously removed their older son from the same school after a student in his class came out as a trans girl, a situation they claim left their son confused "to the point of being unwell and stressed."
The Rowes have since chosen to home-school their children. But it seems that isn't good enough, and they have decided to file suit against the Department for Education for not intervening in their efforts to fight the school's adoption of the Cornwall Schools Transgender Guidance.
In an interview with U.K. newspaper The Times, Nigel Rowe characterized the guidance as "partisan materials that lead [children] down a road of irreversible harm," a frequently repeated charge among anti-trans activists that is the exact opposite of the truth.
All non-surgical medical interventions toward gender-affirmation are entirely reversible, and surgeries are almost never recommended for those under 18--and are illegal in most countries anyway.
Nevertheless, like so many other transphobic Christians, the Rowes believe they know better than the medical community.
As Nigel put it to The Times:
"We believe it is wrong to encourage very young children to embrace transgenderism. Boys are boys and girls are girls…"
Sally Rowe added:
"Six-year-old children are not able or even allowed to make decisions on voting or having a tattoo, for example – it is therefore immoral to think that they can make such life-changing decisions at such a young age."
This characterization of the process of gender-affirmation for children is also misleading, ignoring the extensive counseling by doctors and mental health professionals that children and their parents must receive before accessing gender-affirmation treatment.
On social media, the Rowes' legal fight left many angry and offended.
I see the education department have issued the standard hand waving statement. \n\n"We recognise that issues relating to gender identity can be complex and sensitive." \n\nNo they really aren't, pretending that it's complicated is what got us into this mess in the first place.— ALittleLessPissedOff (@ALittleLessPissedOff) 1634226059
This is madness and damaging children.— Rachel \ud83d\udc99\ud83c\udf3f (@Rachel \ud83d\udc99\ud83c\udf3f) 1634273480
...because trans kids are icky and we don't want them confusing our child...\n\nI'm sure that Jesus dude (who incidentally wore a dress) was all about the love for EVERYONE equally. Weird that so many "Christians" are the biggest bigots...https://archive.is/Filxs— Banquo's Ghost (@Banquo's Ghost) 1634226149
"...the Christian Legal Centre, which is supporting the family" Well, well, well. Just imagine if all the money this is costing was spent helping people in compassionate ways. I don't believe they're Christians. Far from it.https://archive.is/Filxs— UnicornsRock \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08\ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\u26a7\ufe0f (@UnicornsRock \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08\ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\u26a7\ufe0f) 1634205064
They're doing this now, after homeschooling both their children for the last 4 years??— Anna \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\u26a7\ufe0f (@Anna \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\u26a7\ufe0f) 1634209900
They claim the school isn\u2019t making room for them and their faith. No, the school isn\u2019t make room for them to force their beliefs into another child.— Lily-Nichole Robinson (Jennifer) \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\u26a7\ufe0f\ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08 (@Lily-Nichole Robinson (Jennifer) \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\u26a7\ufe0f\ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08) 1634211212
People who say "I don't support LGBT people because I am Christian" are not true Christians. They are just bigots using Christianity as a shield for their bigotry. Jesus welcomed ALL people.https://twitter.com/UnicornsRockUK/status/1448587149935316993\u00a0\u2026— Eden Adder Calvary (@Eden Adder Calvary) 1634210504
" the issue is too complex for children" is the biggest lie these bigots tell themselves, kids get it fine its YOU, the adults, who dont. \n\nStop using your kids to hide behind , thats disgusting.https://twitter.com/UnicornsRockUK/status/1448587149935316993\u00a0\u2026— WriterJoJo\ud83d\udcd6\ud83d\udd8b (@WriterJoJo\ud83d\udcd6\ud83d\udd8b) 1634208120
In a statement to The Times, the UK Department of Education responded to the Rowes' lawsuit by stating s schools' job is to work with students, parents and public services to serve the interests of "individual children" as well as "all others in the school."
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