Catholic Review

Inspiring the Archdiocese of Baltimore

A woman is pictured in a file photo holding rainbow flags for the grand entry at the International Gay Rodeo Association's Rodeo In the Rock event in Little Rock, Ark. A federal judge June 20, 2023, struck down an Arkansas ban on some transgender surgeries or hormonal interventions for minors as unconstitutional. (OSV News photo/Lucy Nicholson, Reuters)

Federal judge nixes Arkansas ban on gender reassignment procedures for minors


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OSV News Filed Under: Health Care, News, Respect Life, World News

A federal judge struck down as unconstitutional an Arkansas ban on some surgeries or hormonal interventions for minors seeking gender reassignment June 20, the first ruling to overturn such a law as a growing number of states with Republican-led governments pass similar restrictions.

U.S. District Judge Jay Moody issued a permanent injunction against the law, after having temporarily blocked its enactment since 2021. At that time, Arkansas became the first state to prohibit doctors from providing transgender surgeries or hormonal treatments to minors after the Legislature overrode then-Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s veto. Hutchinson is currently seeking the Republican nomination for president in 2024.

In a statement posted on Twitter, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, R-Ark., wrote, “This is not ‘care’ — it’s activists pushing a political agenda at the expense of our kids and subjecting them to permanent and harmful procedures.”

“Only in the far-Left’s woke vision of America is it not appropriate to protect children,” Sanders, who was previously White House press secretary during the Trump administration, continued. “We will fight this and the Attorney General plans to appeal Judge Moody’s decision to the Eighth Circuit.”

In recent months, several states have moved to adopt similar restrictions as some approaches to gender dysphoria, particularly in minors, become an increasingly controversial issue. Supporters of prohibitions on surgical or hormonal treatments for minors who identify as transgender say such efforts will prevent them from making irreversible decisions as children they may later come to regret as adults. Critics of such measures argue that preventing those interventions could cause other harm to minors, such as mental health issues or an increased risk of self-harm.

Holly Dickson, executive director of the ACLU of Arkansas, said in a statement the group is “relieved and grateful that the court has ruled in favor of these brave Arkansans and their rights, protecting life-saving care that should be available to all trans youth.”

“This decision sends a clear message,” Dickson said. “Fear-mongering and misinformation about this health care do not hold up to scrutiny; it hurts trans youth and must end. Science, medicine, and law are clear: gender-affirming care is necessary to ensure these young Arkansans can thrive and be healthy.”

In guidance on health care policy and practices released March 20, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Doctrine said it opposed surgical or hormonal interventions that “aim to exchange the sex characteristics of a patient’s body for those of the opposite sex or for simulations thereof.”

“Any technological intervention that does not accord with the fundamental order of the human person as a unity of body and soul, including the sexual difference inscribed in the body, ultimately does not help but, rather, harms the human person,” the document states.

The USCCB voted overwhelmingly June 16 at its assembly in Orlando, Florida, to begin a process that could incorporate the guidance into a revision of its “Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services.”

Inside Baltimore’s fight against human trafficking

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Human trafficking is often hidden in plain sight in Baltimore. Behind the statistics are survivors rebuilding their lives, advocates working to expose exploitation and a network of people determined to offer hope and healing.

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Entrepreneur uses tech to combat human trafficking

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Niccolini’s company, Hotel Shield, works with the hospitality industry to help identify suspicious activity and connect hotels with law enforcement in real time.

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Catholics make the case for care over assisted suicide

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As Maryland lawmakers prepare to revisit legislation that would legalize physician-assisted suicide, Catholic leaders, ethicists and physicians are encouraging Catholics to think carefully about end-of-life decisions, arguing that compassion for the seriously ill should focus on care, dignity and accompaniment rather than assisted death.

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NY archbishop, archdiocese, healthcare ministry join in suit over state’s assisted suicide law

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Catholic opposition to state laws permitting assisted suicide for the terminally ill is expanding in federal courts.

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Appeals court rules Idaho abortion ban may be enforced as voters prepare to weigh in

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A federal appeals court panel ruled Oct. 30 that Idaho’s abortion ban may continue to be fully enforced as voters in the Gem State prepared to vote directly on the legality of abortion on Nov. 3.

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Serving vulnerable pregnant and parenting women is ‘heroic’ work, says USCCB pro-life chair

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The chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities expressed gratitude Oct. 27 “for all those who work to provide necessary resources to women, babies, and families during pregnancy and beyond.”

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