Father Sues School After Daughter Tries to Hang Herself Following Alleged Gender 'Therapy' from Educators
A Florida man is suing school officials linking a suicide attempt by his 12-year-old daughter to alleged gender identity counseling she received on the part of school officials.
The Child & Parental Rights Campaign filed the lawsuit against Clay County schools Superintendent Davis Broskie, Paterson Elementary School Principal John O’Brian, Assistant Principal Courtney Schumacher, and school counselor Destiney Washington, according to the U.K.’s Daily Mail.
The complaint alleges that the girl underwent weekly meetings with Washington over the girl’s supposed “gender identity crisis” but her father, who The Western Journal is identifying only as Wendell out of respect for the family’s privacy, was never told of these meetings.
Wendell has alleged he was told that because he is Catholic, his daughter did not want him to know about the sessions and that school officials were allegedly protecting her confidentiality.
The complaint claims that school officials encouraged students to refer to the girl as a boy and gave her a male name.
What resulted, according to the lawsuit, was an increase in bullying.
Things got so bad that the “distress escalated to the point of attempting suicide at school,” which the girl attempted twice, according to the lawsuit.
The school is accused of “intentionally and recklessly withholding information” based upon “alleged ‘confidentiality rights.’”
In its report on the lawsuit, WJAX-TV quoted the father but withheld his name.
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“It was a nightmare for us,” he said, adding that he was irked that his faith was cited as a barrier to knowing what was taking place.
“I took offense because that had nothing to do with it. I mean I don’t even know if she understands our faith. That demonstrated she was ignorant about it. Our faith is one of unconditional love for our children,” he said.
Vernadette Broyles, president of the Child & Parental Rights Campaign and the attorney who is representing the family, said the suit aims to “protect the rights of parents to be able to raise their children, to direct the care of their child, in accordance with their faith and without the interference of government officials.”
“It is a serious mental health decision that school personnel are not qualified, not competent, and not authorized to make,” she said. “Parents must be involved in these important decisions.”
The suit was filed Monday in federal court. A statement from Clay County Schools said that, as of Tuesday, it had not been served any legal process and claimed no staff member did anything wrong.
“The district has performed a thorough and complete investigation into this matter as it was presented to us and has determined that the allegations made by this out-of-state organization are completely false, fabricated, and appear to be intended solely for the purpose of inciting the public,” the statement said. “All employees of the district consistently work to ensure that the best interests of all students are served. The district will have no further comment on this matter.”
Broyles told WJAX this was a case that shows the need for Florida House Bill 1557, which would prohibit school districts from withholding information from parents about a child’s mental health and ban classroom discussions on gender identity.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
