Parents of Dallas Transgender Girl Worry About Political Actions

At age 3, Frank and Rachel Gonzales' son told them he wanted to let his hair grow and wear a fairy costume.Gradually, their child has been changing into a girl, and today she is called Elizabeth or Libby."I didn't want her to be labeled if she isn't trans[gender] by letting her wear girl clothes to school," Rachel said. "I ended up getting girl clothes that were nondescriptive."At some point, she noticed that Libby, now 7, was acting out at school and was depressed."She finally just said, next Christmas, I want Santa to turn me into a girl. I want girl clothes and girl things," she said.Since January 2016, Libby has dressed as a girl, and everything she says, does and feels shows that she's a girl, her parents said.Even though Libby has been accepted within her home and at her North Texas school, the Dallas family shares a daily concern about what she might face every time she leaves home. The concern grows more as the state lawmakers debate a bill that would prohibit transgender Texans from using the bathroom matching their gender identity in public schools and government buildings.Adding to their concern is the Trump administration's decision Wednesday to do away with federal protections for transgender students. The move axes guidelines rolled out by the Obama administration last May that required schools to let transgender students use the bathroom matching their gender identity or lose federal funding."You can't argue with it. Libby is exactly who she is," Rachel said. "There was no 'making her this way.' She was born this way."  Continue reading...