HBO late-night host John Oliver claimed Sunday that bans on hormone treatments, puberty blockers and sex reassignment surgeries for children are negatively impacting minority communities.
Oliver appeared to defend these procedures for children by saying that they are only conducted after medical professionals consult the patient and their parents. He then lamented that it is costly and disproportionately impacts “working-class families” and racial minorities.
“Before you get to the fact that it is also incredibly expensive, which is why working-class families, families of color, and people with less resources are way less able to access it,” he began. “Basically, no kid is casually dropping into an operating room because they just decided to get their uterus removed with the impulsive recklessness normally associated with getting vaxxed because it’s absolutely a ridiculous thing to say. And the very notion that the states would interfere in any of this is understandably infuriating to both trans kids and their parents.”
He then played footage of a mother from Arkansas describing how her child’s hormone treatments were reportedly beneficial. The footage prompted Oliver to suggest that banning these procedures increases children’s risk of depression and suicide by reading statistics claiming that 58% of those who could not access hormone therapies attempted suicide and only 2% regret these having undergone these procedures. (RELATED: Psaki Says Administration Will Hold States ‘Accountable’ For Outlawing ‘Life-Saving’ Sex Change Surgeries For Kids)
“If a child has to be an activist, we have already failed that child…When opponents of trans rights will say that trans kids are a menace or brainwashed, they’re defenders who often gravitate toward the same sad statistics that I’m showing you tonight—depression and suicide,” he said.
However, a study conducted by professionals at the University of Washington-Seattle in April found that kids receiving puberty blockers and hormones witnessed no statistically significant improvement in their mental health, according to Singal-Minded. The majority continued to experience moderate to severe depression or have self-harm or suicidal thoughts. The professionals then falsely reported a major effect on their mental health.