SB 5599 was by far the worst bill of the 2023 Washington State Legislative session. It is not an exaggeration to say this is “state sanctioned kidnapping.” But the mainstream media will tell you that groups like Conservative Ladies of Washington and others who oppose this law are lying when we say this.
It’s important for citizens (especially parents of minor children) to understand this law and how it can impact their children, family and community. State-sanctioned kidnapping in Washington is not new and our family experienced it firsthand two years ago. Since our horrific experience in 2021, Washington democrats have passed laws in 2022 and now 2023 to make it even easier for the state to take minor children from loving parents. You can learn about our experience on this episode of The Todd Herman Show: The left has been planning to legalize kidnapping for years as Julie Barrett proved EP_744 | Spreaker And this article by Irreversible Damage author Abigail Shrier documents our story (and 2 other WA families): (15) When the State Comes for Your Kids – by Abigail Shrier (substack.com)
Many people are unaware of HB 1469 (which had a companion bill SB 5489 which was referenced in the original SB 5599). The democrats strategically ran HB 1469 which kind of flew under the radar for the most part – although we tried to amplify it as much as possible.
Defenders of SB 5599 insist it does not include “gender affirming” surgeries. It absolutely does and it’s all in the bill. SB 5599 works in collaboration with HB 1469 which defines “protected health care” (and makes WA a sanctuary state for those seeking it)
HB 1469 very clearly defines “gender affirming care” to include surgical procedures. So when people supporting SB 5599 tell you it doesn’t include surgeries – you can point them directly to the text of the law. HB 1469 was passed with an emergency clause, taking effect upon signing of the bill on April 27th.
SB 5599 states that youth seeking “protected health care services” (defined in HB 1469) would be cause for NOT notifying the parents of child’s whereabouts. There is no due process with SB 5599. Adults influencing your minor child could merely “assume” that you would not be gender affirming and this is enough for the state to keep your child’s whereabouts a secret from you. Even law enforcement would not be able to tell you where you child is or if they are safe.
SB 5599 takes effect on July 23, 2023. There is currently a referendum against 5599 and signature collection will begin in the next week. Roughly 200,000 signatures are needed to get the referendum on the ballot in November’s election. It’s a challenge, but it is not impossible, especially if each citizen commits to collecting as many signatures as possible. We also must be prepared for this law not to be overturned. We need to be educating citizens and preparing families and children. Parents: you must have tough conversations with your children about these laws, about adults trying to manipulate them. These are conversations we wish we didn’t have to have, but we’ve got to protect our children and it starts with YOU…at home with open communication.
*By Julie Barrett, Founder, Conservative Ladies of Washington
