The new law comes after several schools passed policies requiring parents be notified if their child requests to change their gender identification.Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a first-in-the-nation law Monday barring school districts from passing policies that require schools to notify parents if their child asks to change their gender identification.
“Politically motivated attacks on the rights, safety, and dignity of transgender, nonbinary, and other LGBTQ+ youth are on the rise nationwide, including in California,” Democratic Assemblymember Chris Ward, who authored the law, said in a statement. “While some school districts have adopted policies to forcibly out students, the SAFETY Act ensures that discussions about gender identity remain a private matter within the family.
But Jonathan Zachreson, an advocate in California who supports the so-called parental notification policies, opposes the law and said telling parents about a student’s request to change their gender identification is “critical to the well-being of children and for maintaining that trust between schools and parents.”