A mother and father in Geneva, Switzerland, have been living a nightmare since government authorities removed their daughter from their home in April 2023.
The girl was experiencing gender confusion, and the parents (who are remaining anonymous for safety reasons and to protect their children) declined puberty blockers and demanded that her school not socially transition her. They obtained a private mental health professional to help the girl.
Against their wishes, the school began to call her by a male name, even though the parents shared with the school peer-reviewed medical and scientific literature raising serious concerns about that practice. They also shared information about other European countries that are moving away from “gender affirmative treatment” due to growing evidence of its harms.
The school then worked with the state child welfare agency and a government-funded trans activist organization. They accused the parents of abuse for objecting to their daughter’s gender transition, and they worked to convince the girl that the mental health professional her parents had obtained was “transphobic.”
In April 2023, a court ordered that the daughter be removed from the family’s home, and she has been living in a government shelter since then. The court also transferred authority over the girl’s medical care from the parents to the state.
In February of this year, the court ordered the parents to hand over documents for their daughter to pursue legal registration as a male. The parents refused under the threat of criminal charges. They have appealed the court order and are awaiting a decision on the appeal.
“As parents, we would do anything to protect our children from harm,” say the parents, who also have a son. “We want the best for our kids. We love them and want to raise them to be honest, kind and self-confident adults. … But right now, our daughter is still a minor, and she rightfully belongs in our home, where we can help her navigate through life’s struggles in a way that is best for her long-term health and happiness.”
The girl’s mother added: “We want our daughter back home. We love her and we miss her.”
Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) International is representing the parents in court. The organization’s website states: “Parents have a God-given duty to care for, raise, and educate their children without undue interference from the State. Scripture contains many commands to parents—but none to the State—about properly raising and training their children.”
“These parents are living every parent’s worst nightmare,” said Felix Böllmann, director of European advocacy for ADF International. “Their child has been taken away from them simply for trying to protect her from harm. The implications of this are devastating not only for them as a family, but also for all of society. No society can claim to be free if parents can lose their daughter solely for affirming biological reality.”
