Sen. Rand Paul pressed President Biden’s assistant secretary of health nominee Rachel Levine, who is transgender, on the issue of genital mutilation during Levine’s confirmation hearing.
“Genital mutilation has been nearly universally condemned. Genital mutilation has been condemned by the WHO, the United Nations children's fund, and the United Nations population fund. According to the WHO, it is recognized internationally as a violation of human rights. Genital mutilation is considered particularly egregious because as the WHO notes, it is nearly always carried out on minors and is a violation of the rights of children,” Paul said during the hearing. “It is typically not performed by force, but as WHO notes, by social convention, social norm, the social pressure to conform and do what others do and have been doing, as well as to be accepted socially, and the fear of being rejected by the community.”
“American culture is now normalizing the idea that minors can be given hormones to prevent their biological development of their secondary sexual characteristics,” Paul continued. “Dr. Levine, you have supported both allowing minors to be given hormone blockers to prevent them from going through puberty, as well as surgical destruction of a minor's genitalia.”
Paul went on to argue that many children with gender dysphoria eventually have the condition resolve on its own, asking Levine if adults should interrupt that process in minors.
