Gender is not a spectrum. It is Biology. We were each created either male or female. The promotion of  teaching an ideology that contradicts what they would learn in science is very dangerous and confusing for our children. It is difficult enough for those children working through the question of Transgender. Why would your push this question onto children it is not a struggle for? It is not okay to divorce your biology. The idea of gender assignment at birth is unfounded. This is one of the main topic that will be put into the curriculum  You were not assigned a gender you were created to either be male or female. To instill the idea into children that they were assigned a gender not made either male or female will cause unnecessary damage and confusion. 

This Bill is also in direct violation of the Parental Rights that Virginia Parents have. This policy in the name of respect outlines that the child's desire to to be transgender will be affirmed regardless of where the parent(s) stand on the issue or if they are even aware. This is a direct violation of Parental Rights. It usurps the parents right to parent and educate the child. When did the school system become the parent? The school does not have the right to affirm a gender that the parents of the child may or may not know about. The school system does not have this right nor should they. 

I am extremely concerned about the safety of our young people. How can it be safe for ALL? When through this Bill men can go into women's bathrooms and so on. There is a major issue here. This issue of safety and privacy really becomes serious in middle and high school. I can remember needing the safety and privacy of the restroom that was only for women. In my senior year of high school I had an angry teach who happened to be male chase me out of his class room and only stopped when I got into the bathroom. If that was a student or teacher that Identified as a women it would have been perfectly fine for him to enter the ladies bathroom. That unfortunate situation I personally lived through would have ended very differently if the bathroom situation was per the directive of the new bill. 

There is also a major religious freedom issue here. With this type of Bill there will be many teachers who will be forced to teach in such a way that directly violates their religious beliefs. There will be many children who will be forced to learn an ideology that is not founded in science that they will be graded on that directly violates their religious beliefs. Potentially Private school and Christian and Jewish and even Muslim schools may be forced to teach something that violates their beliefs. 

To conclude this bill is nothing short of a disaster and a lawsuit. It must not be passed.