The Supreme Court upheld a Tennessee law prohibiting transgender drugs and surgeries for minors.

In a 6-3 decision, the high court ruled the law does not violate the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause.

The six conservative justices ruled in the majority, while the three liberal justices dissented.

“This case carries with it the weight of fierce scientific and policy debates about the safety, efficacy, and propriety of medical treatments in an evolving field,” Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for the majority, according to NBC News.

“The voices in these debates raise sincere concerns; the implications for all are profound,” he continued.

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“The Equal Protection Clause does not resolve these disagreements,” he noted.

“The Supreme Court upholds our ban in Tennessee against gender transition procedures for minors. A huge victory. A fatal blow to the child mutilation industry. We won,” Matt Walsh commented.

From The Daily Wire:

Roberts rejected the plaintiffs’ argument that Tennessee’s law discriminates on the basis of sex.

“The law does not prohibit conduct for one sex that it permits for the other,” Roberts wrote. “Under SB1, no minor may be administered puberty blockers or hormones to treat gender dysphoria, gender identity disorder, or gender incongruence; minors of any sex may be administered puberty blockers or hormones for other purposes.”

Roberts also noted that the number of minors requesting “sex transition treatments” has increased in recent years, while there have been “rising debates regarding the relative risks and benefits of such treatments” including European countries cracking down on these procedures and drugs.

Justice Clarence Thomas wrote a concurring opinion in which he said, “there is no medical consensus on how best to treat gender dysphoria in children,” and “recent revelations suggest that leading voices in this area have relied on questionable evidence, and have allowed ideology to influence their medical guidance.”

“This is a massive! A wonderful victory for decency, common sense, and our kids Now we need a nationwide ban! Onward,” Charlie Kirk commented.

NBC News reports:

Liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote in a dissenting opinion that contrary to the majority’s conclusion, the law does discriminate based on both sex and transgender status and should therefore be analyzed closely.

“By retreating from meaningful judicial review exactly where it matters most, the court abandons transgender children and their families to political whims,” she wrote. “In sadness, I dissent.”

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Sotomayor also took the relatively unusual step of reading a summary of her decision from the bench in court, saying the impact of the decision is “incredibly dangerous.”

Trans rights activists have warned that a ruling allowing bans on care for trans minors could pave the way for similar restrictions aimed at adults.

“Today’s ruling is a devastating loss for transgender people, our families, and everyone who cares about the Constitution,” Chase Strangio, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union who represents the challengers, said in a statement.

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti welcomed the decision as a win for “common sense over judicial activism.”

He added that legislators should give “careful scrutiny” before allowing such treatments, making judgments “based on science, not ideology.”

 

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