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The Georgia Republican congresswoman amplified a Libs of TikTok post that uses an out-of-context video clip to paint gender-affirming care as child abuse.
Right-wing extremists and influencers are misrepresenting a decade-old episode of NBC’s Dateline featuring Josie Romero, a young transgender girl from Arizona, to challenge the legitimacy of gender-affirming care.
The central figures in this misleading campaign are Georgia U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Chaya Raichik of Libs of TikTok on X, formerly Twitter. They and others on the right have leveraged a clip from the 2012 episode, portraying a moment of parental support for Josie’s identity as coercion into medical treatment, to fuel their argument against such care for transgender youth.
Raichik highlighted a specific scene where Josie, then 11, receives puberty blockers, alleging, “What you’re watching is one of the greatest medical scandals in modern history. Thousands of kids & adolescents sold the lie that they’re born in the wrong body and if they permanently alter their body they can be happy. This video should infuriate you.” Echoing Raichik’s sentiment, Greene retweeted the post, falsely claiming, “This is child abuse!! Congress must pass my bill Protect Children’s Innocence Act to make it illegal to perform this on children!!!”
However, this portrayal fails to capture the true context; Josie’s reaction in the video stems from a common childhood fear of needles and momentary discomfort, not from any reluctance towards the gender-affirming treatment itself.
In August, Gays Against Groomers, an anti-trans hate group, targeted Romero on social media, misgendering her and using her deadname, and spun a narrative of doubt and regret around her transition, which they presented as evidence of the harm of gender affirmation.
Romero, who now goes by Sadie Croft, has grown up and continues to live authentically despite the ongoing debate surrounding her childhood decision. Her Instagram page, which features moments from her life, has become another battleground, with some commentators urging her to detransition and others outright denying her transgender identity.
Greene’s Protect Children’s Innocence Act proposed making it illegal for health care providers to perform gender transition procedures on people under the age of 18. Supporters of the bill argue it protects minors from irreversible decisions, while critics, including major medical organizations like the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Medical Association, see it as an attack on the rights of transgender youth, denying them access to medically necessary, gender-affirming healthcare.
