The controversial statements of a Montana lawmaker have gone viral this week, adding even more fuel to the fire in the debate over trans children seeking gender-affirming care. During a floor debate last month, Republican State Rep. Kerri Seekins-Crowe took to the podium and gave a tearful, firsthand account of what it was like to have a child struggle with both their gender identity and suicidal thoughts for several years. But instead of focusing on how she supported her daughter through the experience, Seekins-Crowe instead suggested that she preferred to risk her child dying by suicide than allow her to transition.
More from Mom.com: How to Talk to Friends and Family About Your Transgender Child
The lawmaker's statements originally came in March
At the time, lawmakers were discussing a bill — which Seekins-Crowe not only supported but sponsored — that would ban gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors. However, it wasn't until a video clip was shared with the public this week that her statements began to go viral.
Montana bill sponsor: I prefer my transgender daughter commit suicide rather than allow her to transition.
– Rep. Kerri Seekins-Crowe (R)pic.twitter.com/28e1aCWiR7
— The Intellectualist (@highbrow_nobrow) April 27, 2023
"One of the big issues that we have heard today and we've talked about lately is that without surgery the risk of suicide goes way up," Seekins-Crowe says in the video. "Well, I am one of those parents who lived with a daughter who was suicidal for three years."
"Someone once asked me, 'Wouldn't I just do anything to help save her?'" the mother continued. "And I really had to think and the answer was, 'No.'"
That alone is a sobering statement — one that Seekins-Crowe attempted to explain
And as she spoke, her views on transgender rights — as well as her daughter's own personal experience — became crystal-clear.
"I was not going to give into her emotional manipulation because she was incapable of making those decisions and I had to make those decisions for her," she told her fellow representatives. "I was not going to let her tear apart my family and I was not going to let her tear apart me because I had to be strong for her, I had to have a vision for her life when she had none, was incapable of having none."
The video has received considerable backlash online
Much of it has included statements of shock, outrage, and disbelief at how dismissive Seekins-Crowe seemed to be of her own daughter's experience.
Montana bill sponsor: I prefer my transgender daughter commit suicide rather than allow her to transition.
– Rep. Kerri Seekins-Crowe (R)pic.twitter.com/28e1aCWiR7
— The Intellectualist (@highbrow_nobrow) April 27, 2023
One Twitter user said they were stunned to hear a parent call their suicidal child an "emotional manipulator."
"Can we start a GoFundMe for this kid's therapy and put this woman in an iron maiden?" they tweeted in response to the news.
Another user implied that Seekins-Crowe was a narcissist, summing up the mother's statements in the following tweet: "'Wouldn’t you doing ANYTHING to save your daughter’s life? NO. I’m more important.' Enough said."
"My gut tells me that the hours she spent in prayer could have been used to find her daughter real help," another person lamented. "I hope we read her daughter’s book one day, I’d love to have her point of view."
Over the past 24 hours, criticism of Seekins-Crowe has not let up
On Twitter, people have called her everything from "heartless" to "cruel." Some have also said she has "no business in a governing body."
I just watched a clip of Rep. Kerri Seekins-Crowe of Montana equating suicidality to manipulation. She was speaking specifically about her own kid.
How broken as a person, AS A PARENT, do you need to be to think that your child's pain is manipulation?
— Defective Gnome (@GingerIsTired) April 27, 2023
Even fellow lawmakers are speaking out against the Montana woman.
"I vehemently disagree with this speech by GOP state rep Kerri Seekins-Crowe," tweeted State Representative Ted Lieu, D-Calif. "But you know what she didn’t say? That it should be the government’s role to make personal decisions for families. Why is she now shoving her private decision down other people’s throats?"
More from Mom.com: Having a Transgender Loved One Taught These Families the Meaning of 'Living Your Truth'
Ironically, the Montana rep has portrayed herself as a much different kind of leader
In her Instagram bio, Seekins-Crowe says, "I identify people’s superpowers, spread a lot of sunshine & a little heat, & leave every person better than I found them."
And in a campaign video she released in 2021, she focuses on a message of understanding, support, and acceptance.
"My job is to represent you, to ask questions, to search for answers, and to promote real solutions," she says in the ad. "My job is not to try to control how you choose to live your life and pursue your happiness."
On YouTube, there is currently only one response in the comment section, which reads: "SHE'S A FREAKING MONSTER!!!"
The debate over trans youth — and the existence of trans people in general — is nothing new
In fact, it's been raging for a while now in many states throughout the U.S., and has recently made headlines in states like Kansas, Tennessee, and Florida.
Earlier this month, a new bill was passed in Kansas that will prohibit transgender students from participating in girls' and women's sports, and potentially lead to "genital inspections" for all youth athletes.
Another Kansas bill, passed in February, also ruled that transgender women will be banned from entering female-designated spaces, such as public restrooms, locker rooms, and even domestic violence shelters. Ironically, the bill is being called the "women's bill of rights."
In March, representatives in Tennessee also blocked gender-affirming care for trans youth and banned drag shows from taking place on public property.
And in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis expanded his "Don't Say Gay" bill earlier this month, banning any classroom instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity in all grade levels.
