‘It is hurting us’: Trans kids and parents in Missouri speak out, and brace for bans

Three trans boys and their parents describe growing up amid a wave of anti-trans legislation.
As their health care is being debated in Missouri’s legislature, the lives of three young trans boys growing up in St. Louis County are, for now, largely unchanged.

Speaking to St. Louis on the Air’s Elaine Cha, they described attending school, playing in sports leagues and looking forward to summer camp — typical for a group of young friends between the ages of 9 and 11. With the consent of their parents, the three boys spoke to St. Louis Public Radio on the condition that they not be named.

“My coming out was very spontaneous,” said an 11-year-old trans boy. Accepted by his parents and friends after coming out, he has lived as a boy for more than five years, a substantial proportion of his young life.