California Legislators Present New Bills to Strengthen Parental Rights and Safeguard Girls’ Sports

Two legislators in California have introduced three legislative measures aimed at reestablishing parental control over public schooling, providing parents the option to exempt their children from lessons on gender ideology, and prohibiting male students identifying as female from participating in girls’ sports or using their bathrooms and locker rooms.

Republican State Assemblywoman Leticia Castillo revealed two of the proposed bills during a press conference outside the Capitol building in Sacramento on February 14.

“California needs to become a place where parents are secure in raising their families and instilling their values without fear of government interference,” Castillo asserted. “Parents are the primary educators of their children, and children belong to their families, not the state.”

“As a mental health professional, I have seen the troubling trend of vulnerable children struggling with issues like depression, anxiety, and ADHD gravitating towards transgender identities,” Castillo, who also works as a psychotherapist, explained.

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Yaeli’s Law would empower parents to use their child’s legal name and refer to them with pronouns corresponding to their sex—not their gender identity. Furthermore, it acknowledges parental authority to reject “gender-affirming care,” which includes both social and physical gender transitions for their children, clarifying that such parental choices do not equate to child abuse or neglect and do not warrant state intervention in custody matters.

Moreover, the legislation would grant parents the right to sue those who falsely accuse them of abuse.

For three years, Martinez faced allegations of emotional abuse and was ultimately determined not to be abusive, according to Erin Friday, a lawyer and co-leader of Our Duty, a group opposing gender ideology.

“However, it was too late because Yaeli had already become a state ward, during which time the court mandated testosterone treatment for this young girl in confusion,” Friday shared with The Epoch Times prior to the press conference.

Families with gender dysphoric children often grapple with the anxiety of either “affirming” their child’s transgender identity—even when it may be temporary and lead to irreversible medical consequences—or risking intervention from Child Protective Services, potentially losing custody, explained Friday, whose own daughter formerly identified as transgender.

Excluding Boys From Girls’ Sports

A third proposed bill, introduced by Republican Assemblyman Bill Essayli, intends to reinstate sex-segregated sports teams, bathrooms, and changing facilities based on immutable biological sex rather than fluctuating gender identities, in accordance with Title IX regulations.

“President Trump’s initiative to protect women’s sports at the federal level has been vital to our efforts here in California, but this is merely the start,” Essayli remarked, referencing Trump’s recent executive measures.

“We recognize that California will endeavor to resist compliance with federal law, hence our responsibility to advocate for change at the state and local levels.”

Democratic State Senator Scott Wiener, a strong ally of gender-reassignment practices and a member of the LGBTQ caucus, criticized the proposed legislation.

Wiener communicated to The Epoch Times via text that Trump and the Republicans are “diverting attention by targeting and demonizing transgender individuals,” thereby distracting from pressing issues like tariffs and the enforcement of illegal immigration, which he categorized as an assault on essential workers.

“Transgender individuals represent less than 1 percent of the population. Politicians focusing on them—rather than addressing real-life issues such as the rising cost of living—are exacerbating the risks of violence against this community,” Wiener stated.

He accused the lawmakers backing the bills of “stoking a perilous and defamatory culture war against transgender individuals.”

Detransitioners

Chloe Cole, who reversed her transition from identifying as male and underwent puberty blockers and testosterone, is currently pursuing legal action against Kaiser Permanente and the doctors involved in her double mastectomy performed at the age of 15.

She urged every legislator in the state to back the proposed bills.

“California is entirely disregarding the rights of parents, denying them the opportunity to be informed about their children’s experiences and the genuine implications of transitioning for a child,” Cole criticized.

At 20, Cole is among a growing group of detransitioners who have endured permanent damage and deeply regret the various stages of their gender transitions.

“I still experience flashbacks. Sometimes I have dreams where I see myself in the mirror as a young man, and it’s indescribably terrifying to see something that is no longer there haunting me for years,” Cole reflected.

“These are not genuine feelings. There is no validity to the notion of being born in the wrong body, and to allow a child to embrace this idea is incredibly detrimental.”

Trump emphasized in his inaugural address on January 20 that the federal government will recognize only two genders: male and female.

Tony Hoang, executive director of Equality California, responded to the investigation into CIF’s policy supporting transgender athletes, asserting that protections have been secure for years “without issue.”

He described the education department’s investigation as a “politically driven attack” and part of a wider effort to target transgender youth with government weaponization.

Hoang emphasized that Equality California will persist in advocating for the rights of transgender youth and their families, as well as for CIF, and will defend policies that promote inclusion and equality.

Equality California, the largest LGBT advocacy organization in the state, has condemned Trump’s position against gender ideology.

Melissa Batie-Smoose, the former assistant coach for the Spartans Women’s Volleyball team at San Jose State University, stated that she was dismissed for joining the Title IX lawsuit against the NCAA and Mountain West Conference.

Batie-Smoose explained that she filed the complaint to safeguard female athletes and maintain the integrity of women’s sports after discovering that one of her players was biologically male.

She expressed surprise at not being informed about coaching an athlete who was male before accepting the position and relocating her family across the country.

“I assumed I would be coaching all female athletes,” she stated.