When parents divorce, the question of custody is often decided with a difficult, sometimes acrimonious legal battle.
The divorce itself can already be a lot for a child to adjust to when both parents can agree, but it’s especially hard when each parent has entirely different ideas of how that child should be raised.
But if that already seems like an overwhelming situation, one case from Texas illustrates that situations like these can become even more arduous to get through when the parents fundamentally disagree about who their child even is.
However, while personal ramifications of this case will likely reveal themselves years after the fact, it appears that a legal settlement of the matter has been reached now that the judge in this case has made her decision.
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During his brief marriage to Anne Georgulas, Jeffrey Younger would become the father of twins.
As The Washington Post reported , however, this marriage was soon annulled as the parents could not agree on one of their children’s gender identity.
On their third birthday, one of these twins who is now named Luna expressed the desire to be a girl.
As Georgulas had noticed at the time, Luna wanted to wear dresses and look like Anna and Elsa from Disney’s Frozen .
This prompted Georgulas to take the child to a therapist, who then diagnosed Luna with gender dysphoria.
This meant their gender did not align with the one they were assigned at birth.
This therapist then worked out some steps on how to affirm Luna’s gender with Georgulas.
This included letting Luna paint their nails and allowing the child to wear a dress, which Georgulas did by the time the twins turned five.
She also attempted to enroll the child in gender transition therapy at GENECIS, a pediatric clinic for transgender children.
However, since Younger retained some custody of Luna by this time and objected to the idea, they could not accept Luna as a client.
Not only that, but Younger would cut the child’s hair, dress them in clothes traditionally associated with boys, and refer to them by their birth name, James.
This was because Younger argued that Georgulas was pressuring the child to adopt the name Luna and female pronouns and believed that they were comfortable dressing as a boy.
At the time, Younger was paying maximum child support.
He was also legally allowed to see his children once a week for two hours and have them over at his home for two weekends per month.
Younger went on to claim that Georgulas was going to subject Luna to irreversible medical procedures akin to “mutilation” or “chemical castration.”
As The Washington Post reported , this characterization inspired Texas Republican politicians such as Senator Ted Cruz and Representative Dan Crenshaw to claim that this would force the child to make profound medical decisions at seven that would come into effect by the time they hit puberty.
Younger’s statements were also a likely factor in Georgulas’s decision to file a restraining order against Younger barring him from entering the twins’ school.
Specifically, it was intended to block him from telling teachers and students “that the gender of Luna is different than a girl named Luna.”
However, Younger’s perception of the situation has been cited as a misconception by both a clinical psychologist at Pacific University and a social work professor at Miami University in Ohio.
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Katherine Kuvalanka, the social work professor, told The Washington Post that no medical interventions take place before the child reaches puberty.
She also said that Younger’s preferred method of “watchful waiting” might be harmful in cases where the parent isn’t accepting the possibility of gender dysphoria. It’s also been considered outdated by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Laura Edwards-Leeper, the aforementioned clinical psychologist, added that no medical procedure automatically takes place at puberty.
For a seven-year-old like Luna, any gender transition therapy would focus on changes in hairstyle, clothing, pronouns, and other social factors. It also does not include any presumption that they will remain committed to any specific gender identity in the future.
While it could be possible for the parents, the child, and medical professionals to agree on the use of puberty blockers between the ages of 10 and 13, they are completely reversible.
Once the child stops taking them, puberty continues as it otherwise would.
While Georgulas petitioned for a joint custody contingent on Younger’s acceptance of Luna’s gender identity, Younger petitioned for full custody.
Ultimately, however, the jury ruled that Georgulas would effectively attain full custody of the twins, which also means that she has the right to sign off on medical and psychological decisions regarding these children.
However, Judge Kim Cooks of the 255th Family District Court’s ruling did not match the jury’s decison.
As The Daily Mail reported , Cooks ruled that Younger and Georgulas will have joint conservatorship over the child.
This means they will have to make joint medical decisions when it comes to any future hormonal therapies and will have to agree on future haircuts, dental and psychiatric care.
Cooks also ordered that both parents will have to attend counselling.
h/t: The Washington Post
