EDITOR’S NOTE: The Pathway added reporting at the end of this article, noting that Chloe Cole will speak at Hannibal-LaGrange University, March 25. See more below, or visit the HLGU website here.
For many opponents of our nation’s cultural embrace of radical gender ideology, the past several months have been a welcomed reprieve from the madness and a return to truth. Once sworn into office, President Trump began repealing Biden-era policies that pushed gender ideology into every corner of the federal government. This included multiple executive orders establishing two genders, male and female, removing men from women’s sports, and protecting children from chemical and surgical mutilation. Furthermore, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons disavowing its previous support for pediatric surgical “gender transitions” and a softening position from the American Medical Association signal a substantial cultural shift.
As we celebrate these significant events that recognize biblical truth and biological reality, it is also important to acknowledge that executive orders and agency regulations are temporary solutions, easily undone by a future administration. In order to safeguard these important changes, Congress must pass legislation that enshrines these protections, especially for children, into law, such as the Chloe Cole Act of 2026.
What is the Chloe Cole Act of 2026?
The Chloe Cole Act of 2026, named for the advocate Chloe Cole who has publicly shared about the horrors of being pushed into “transitioning” in her early teens, prohibits gender transition procedures for minors through regulating interstate commerce. The initial bill was introduced in 2025 by Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and reintroduced with updated language in 2026 by Rep. Bob Onder (R-MO-3).
The Chloe Cole Act would give parents or their children the right to sue any healthcare professional, hospital or clinic that participated in the child’s “gender transition.” This right would operate as the legal deterrent effectively banning these procedures nationwide. With a statute of limitations expiring 25 years after the child turns 18 years old or four years after incurring detransition costs, this provision would allow victims of this radical ideology to seek justice for the harms perpetrated against them.
The right to bring a lawsuit would be triggered if any healthcare professional, hospital or clinic participated in planning, authorizing, prescribing, administering or performing the “gender transition” of a child. This authority comes from Congress’ power to regulate interstate commerce (Article I, Section 8, Clause 3 of Constitution). Under the regulation of interstate commerce, the child cannot have:
- Traveled via interstate or foreign commerce.
- Used any means, facility, channel, or instrumentality of interstate or foreign commerce.
- Made any payments through such manners.
- Communicated through interstate or foreign commerce.
Additionally, the bill would include substances, items or instruments that have traveled through interstate or foreign commerce for the purpose of “transitioning” a child. This would fundamentally restrict the movement of drugs and surgical instruments used to perform these dangerous procedures on children.
The state of children and ‘gender transitions’ in the U.S.
Since 2019, at least 14,000 minors have received dangerous “gender transition” procedures, either chemically or surgically. Tens of thousands of children will now suffer the life-long consequences of having their bodies doped, mutilated, sterilized and psychologically damaged from so-called compassionate care.
Currently, 24 states have laws that prohibit healthcare professionals from using drugs or procedures to “transition” a minor. In addition, two states, New Hampshire and Arizona, have banned surgical “transitions” for minors. Meanwhile, laws in Montana and Arkansas have been tied up in the courts. The former’s law was struck down by the state supreme court, while the latter’s was upheld.
Additionally, in a recent ruling from a civil case in New York, a jury found the medical team of patient Fox Varian had strayed from proper medical procedures and failed to obtain adequate consent before performing a double mastectomy on her at age 16. Now 22, Fox regrets her “transition” and affirms her biological sex, but unfortunately lives daily with the consequences of reckless medicine. This groundbreaking ruling opens the door for more like it across the country. The Chloe Cole Act of 2026 would ensure these individuals have the opportunity to receive justice and restrict the practice so that it does not happen to any more children.
The ERLC will continue advocating for the Chloe Cole Act of 2026 and other necessary measures to ensure children are protected from irresponsible and dangerous “gender transitions” that subvert truth and deny children their God-given dignity.
What have Southern Baptists said about gender and sexuality?
Southern Baptists have called for our national leaders to enact laws that “recognize the biological reality of male and female” and “protect children’s innocence from sexual predation” (2025 resolution “On Restoring Moral Clarity through God’s Design for Gender, Marriage, and the Family”). Furthermore, Southern Baptists commended legislative bodies that have already taken action “to protect children from ‘gender transition’ interventions” (2023 resolution “On Opposing ‘Gender Transition’”).
To learn more about God’s good design for gender and sexuality and how to equip your church, download our church guide, “God’s Good Design: A Practical Guide for Answering Gender Confusion,” for free.
Cole to speak at HLGU, March 25
Cole will speak this month at Hannibal-LaGrange University’s Free Society event. The event will take place on Wednesday, March 25, 2026, at 6:00 p.m., and will center on the theme “Facing Giants.”
During her presentation, Cole will address the numerous “giants” facing students today—situational, emotional, cultural, political, and ideological challenges. She will encourage young adults to confront these obstacles with courage, emphasizing that healing and growth require facing adversity directly.
HLGU’s Free Society program seeks to promote the ideals of a free society by focusing on three foundational pillars: democratic forms of government, free-market economic systems, and cultural institutions such as the church. All programming within the initiative explores these principles through a biblical worldview central to the university’s mission.
“At Hannibal-LaGrange University, we are committed to transforming lives through an education anchored in a biblical worldview,” said Dr. Eric Turner, Chair of the Arts and Humanities Division and Associate Professor of New Testament and Greek. “Chloe Cole brings a compelling voice that will challenge our students and community to think deeply about identity. We look forward to learning from her conviction, compassion, and testimony of what it means to flourish as individuals made in God’s image.”
Drawing from her personal journey, Cole will offer both honesty and hope as she speaks to the challenges young people face, reminding attendees that even the largest giants can be confronted and overcome.
Tickets are now available for purchase for $15 at www.hlg.edu.
For more information, please contact Charlie McKeon at 573.629.3260 or charlie.mckeon@hlg.edu.