A Democratic state representative from Kentucky recently went viral for her views on transgenderism . She may have earned plenty of accolades from liberals, but her speech got a lot wrong.

Kentucky state Rep. Pamela Stevenson spoke against House Bill 470 , a bill to restrict so-called gender-affirming care for minors. In her speech, Stevenson said it was hypocritical of Republicans to call themselves the party of limited government while restricting a child’s ability to undergo irreversible procedures.

“This country is built on parents being responsible for their children,” Stevenson said . “In this bill, are we substituting the opinions of legislators for the right for parents to raise their children?”

“I’m not even sure how we even got here,” she continued. "As a 27-year military veteran, I fought so that all people can have freedoms, not just the ones I like.”

Invoking freedom when talking about transgenderism in minors is ridiculous. Letting children make life-altering decisions is not freedom.

It is physically impossible for a male to become a girl or woman. A female cannot become a boy or a man. Chromosomes and genitalia determine gender, not feelings. When lawmakers want to restrict so-called gender-affirming care for minors, they want to limit using puberty blockers and hormones on children and so-called bottom surgery.

If a lawmaker’s idea of freedom is letting children who are young enough to believe in Santa Claus receive irreversible hormone treatments or surgery, she has a warped sense of reality. Why would we allow the sterilization and mutilation of children who may either want to have a family or one day come to regret their decisions?

Stevenson also claimed that conservatives would have different priorities if they really cared about children.

“You’re not doing anything for the children that are hungry,” Stevenson argued. “You’re not doing anything for the children that are in foster care being abused. You’re not doing what you need to do for the little black kids that are experiencing racism every day.”

While Stevenson is correct that childhood poverty, problems with the foster care system, and whatever racism exists in society today are problems worth addressing, this is a deflection tactic meant to distract people from this issue. Many problems exist in society. Just because lawmakers are working on a bill to address one problem, that does not mean they do not care about other issues. 

Stevenson’s speech also demonstrates why conservatives must offer alternatives for dealing with mental health problems, including gender dysphoria and body dysmorphia. They are serious problems that lawmakers must not ignore. Lawmakers should try to improve mental health and access to mental health services, not allow children to make life-altering decisions.

So while Stevenson will not support conservative efforts in the Kentucky state legislature, conservatives should press forward with it to help children. States must prioritize protecting children and offering alternative solutions for addressing mental health concerns rather than allowing minors to make irreversible decisions that will have negative long-term consequences.

Tom Joyce ( @TomJoyceSports ) is a political reporter for the New Boston Post in Massachusetts.