A new bill in Colorado could soon classify something as simple as calling your son “he” — if he identifies otherwise — as child abuse under state law. House Democrats have introduced legislation that would formally categorize “misgendering” and “deadnaming” children as “coercive control,” with serious consequences for parental rights.
HB25-1312, introduced by Democrat lawmakers Lorena García, Rebekah Stewart, and Sen. Chris Kolker, would allow courts to weigh a parent’s use of biologically accurate names or pronouns when making custody and visitation decisions. In other words, affirming reality in your own home could be used against you in a family court.
The bill defines deadnaming as “purposefully, and with the intent to disregard the individual’s gender identity or gender expression, refer[ring] to an individual by their birth name.” Similarly, misgendering is defined as using pronouns or honorifics that align with the child’s biological sex rather than their “gender identity.”
If passed, the legislation would give courts legal authority to treat these actions as forms of abuse. That includes decisions over parenting time, potentially stripping custody from parents who don’t affirm a child’s chosen identity — even if they’re just trying to protect that child from irreversible medical procedures.
Worse, the bill would prohibit Colorado courts from honoring out-of-state orders to remove a child from a home where so-called “gender-affirming care” is being provided. That means parents trying to shield their kids from dangerous hormone treatments or surgeries could be denied support from other states.
As for public life, the bill would further enshrine radical gender ideology into state law. It would:
- Make misgendering or deadnaming a discriminatory act under the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act, giving schools, businesses, and public institutions license to punish those who disagree with gender ideology.
- Require public institutions to accommodate “chosen names” on official forms — and mandate that they continue using them, regardless of legal identity.
- Prevent schools from implementing gender-based dress codes and require them to “include all reasons” a student may choose a different name in name-change policies.
The bill is named the “Kelly Loving Act” after a transgender-identifying individual killed in the 2022 Club Q shooting. But critics say the legislation is nothing more than a Trojan horse for authoritarian social engineering — one that punishes parents, overrides biological reality, and forces schools and government bodies to comply with a dangerous ideology.
Conservatives across the state are sounding the alarm, warning that if HB25-1312 passes, it would set a precedent for criminalizing traditional parenting.
“This bill essentially tells parents that if you don’t agree with the state on gender ideology, they can take your kids,” said one Colorado family advocate. “It’s an unprecedented assault on parental rights.”
Whether the bill survives the legislative process remains to be seen, but it’s part of a growing national trend. States like California and Washington have already flirted with similar policies, and Biden-era federal guidelines paved the way.
If passed, Colorado would be the first state to explicitly label misgendering and deadnaming a form of child abuse under the law — a chilling milestone for free speech, parental rights, and biological truth.
