The Republican lawmaker sharply criticized Democratic policies on transgender medical care for minors and abortion during a heated Assembly debate, calling for greater protections for children.
Trenton, NJ – Assemblyman Paul Kanitra, a Republican representing parts of Ocean County, delivered an emotional speech on the floor of the New Jersey General Assembly Tuesday night, denouncing gender-affirming medical care for minors and third-trimester abortions.
Kanitra told a room full of disineterested Democrats that the state should not be calling genital mutilation ‘healthcare’ and that quack doctors could wait until the children are in the 20s and ‘cut off whatever they want’ at that time.
In a social media post after the debate, Kanitra described the address as “my most important floor speech ever,” saying he became emotional while thinking about his 10-month-old son, children he believes have been harmed by medical treatments, and babies lost through abortion.
Kanitra says speech was inspired by his family
“The whole time I was thinking of my little 10 month old boy,” Kanitra wrote. “I thought of myself who was born two months premature and lived in an incubator for a few weeks. I thought of detransitioners like Chloe Cole. I thought of countless kids who had body parts chopped off and futures destroyed.”
He added, “I thought of all the little babies who have been violently ripped apart in the most agonizing deaths imaginable. And I got emotional. I said all the things I’ve wanted to say for years. I said all of the things that needed to be said.”
Kanitra concluded his post by urging supporters to “start protecting” children “from the left’s BS rhetoric, factless preying on of emotions, and packaging insane things in cute terminology.”
Criticism of abortion and transgender medical care
During his remarks on the Assembly floor, Kanitra argued that most New Jersey residents oppose both gender-affirming surgeries for minors and third-trimester abortions.
“The average person in New Jersey doesn’t support drastic trans surgeries. They don’t support third trimester abortions,” Kanitra said. “But you guys wrap it up in these cutesy terms. You’ve pulled the wool over everybody’s eyes. You call it healthcare.”
Kanitra went on to describe third-trimester abortion procedures in graphic terms, saying they involve “a multi-hour surgery where they dismember children that can dream, dismember children that have a heartbeat, dismember children that can feel within the womb.” He called the procedure “abhorrent” and accused supporters of portraying it as healthcare.
Medical organizations and abortion-rights advocates dispute Kanitra’s characterization of abortion procedures and note that abortions later in pregnancy are uncommon and are often performed because of serious fetal conditions or significant risks to the pregnant patient’s health.
Calls for delaying irreversible medical decisions
Kanitra also argued that minors experiencing gender dysphoria should receive treatment focused on underlying mental health issues rather than irreversible medical interventions.
“You aren’t treating the root cause,” he said. “These are 12-year-olds, 13-year-olds, 14 years old. They don’t know themselves. Literally, scientifically, their brains aren’t fully developed until they’re in their early 20s.”
He suggested some children may be coping with trauma, depression, anxiety, or other mental health conditions and alleged that some medical providers have financial incentives to recommend gender-related treatments.
“I talked with Chloe. I talked with her family,” Kanitra said, referring to detransitioner Chloe Cole. “I heard the stories of hundreds of detransitioners who say that they’re never going to be able to have kids again. That’s ruining somebody’s life.”
Kanitra said adults should be free to make their own decisions but argued that permanent medical procedures should wait until adulthood.
“Live your own best life, whatever your sexual identity is, whatever you want to be,” he said. “Do that. Do it at 21 years old. Live your authentic self. Chop off whatever the hell you want to at 21 years old. Why are we doing this to 12, 13, 14, and 15-year-old kids? It’s abhorrent, and you should be ashamed.”
Key Points
- Assemblyman Paul Kanitra delivered an emotional speech criticizing gender-affirming medical care for minors and third-trimester abortions.
- Kanitra said his remarks were inspired by his young son, detransitioners, and his opposition to current Democratic policies.
- Medical organizations and abortion-rights advocates dispute several of Kanitra’s characterizations regarding abortion procedures and gender-affirming care for minors.
Related: Paul Kanitra, New Jersey General Assembly, New Jersey, Chloe Cole, gender-affirming care