By Emel Akan
WASHINGTON—The transgender movement has recently gained significant national attention owing to numerous factors, including the controversy surrounding big corporations like Budweiser and Target’s support for the movement as well as widespread public opposition to transgender athletes competing in women’s sports.
To raise awareness about the harms caused by the movement, Moms For America, an advocacy group for family rights, will host a virtual screening and panel discussion of the Epoch Original docudrama “Gender Transformation: The Untold Realities” on Oct. 5 at the Heritage Foundation in Washington.
The documentary screening will begin at 6:00 p.m., followed by a live panel discussion at 7:35 p.m., and viewers can watch the event live on The Epoch Times website.
The event will explore the complex issues surrounding gender confusion, transgenderism, and their effect on young people. It will also inform mothers on how to spot extremist messaging in schools across the country.
“We love this film,” Kimberly Fletcher, founder and president of Moms For America told NTD TV, a sister media outlet of The Epoch Times.
She said that after watching the documentary, she was deeply moved and said, “Oh my gosh, everybody in America needs to see this.”
That’s how she decided to host the screening of the film and the live panel discussion.
“I think when people see this, they will realize that this is really a billion-dollar business that’s set up to mutilate our children,” she said. “We’re going in the wrong direction. We need to come back to the right direction.”
By following the journeys of several former transgender youths, the Epoch Times film unpacks the complexities behind the rise of the transgender movement and the role of institutions, from schools to medical and pharmaceutical companies.
As highlighted in the documentary, parents are often confronted with a challenging dilemma during their children’s gender identity crises: “Would you rather have a dead daughter or a living son?”
However, parents recognize that the answer to this heartbreaking issue is far from simple.
The event is expected “to serve as a valuable resource, even offering possible solutions for parents and their children when they are faced with gender confusion,” said Jan Jekielek, senior editor with The Epoch Times and Host of the EpochTV show “American Thought Leaders.”
The live panel discussion will feature Ms. Fletcher, Mercedes Schlapp, senior fellow at the American Conservative Union Foundation, January Littlejohn, licensed mental health councilor, Mark Trammell, executive director and general counsel of the Center for American Liberty, Katherine Welch, physician and collaborating clinician for the Society for Evidence-Based Gender Medicine, and Laura Perry Smalts, author of “Transgendered to Transformed.”
According to Ms. Fletcher, the panel discussion will focus on some of the stories of what families are experiencing and what they can do to protect their children.
“Parents are the target audience. We’re asking them to bring their teenagers or preteens and watch it with them, and then also share it with anyone who has influence over children in our society,” she said.
About the Docudrama
The Epoch Times film examines the complex issues surrounding transgenderism and explains the roles played by the education system, the medical and pharmaceutical industries, the financial interests behind the transgender movement, and the societal and political mechanisms at work.
The docudrama tells the real-life stories of several former transgender youth who started the gender transitioning process and their experiences at various stages of the journey through interviews and re-enactments.
Experts interviewed in the film reveal the life-altering medical and psychological impacts of the experimental medication used, including the irreversible side effects of puberty blockers, hormone therapies, and surgeries that are often ignored by the media.
In the docudrama, award-winning director Tobias Elvhage brings to light the untold realities and implications of the transgender movement on American children and youth. His most recent awards include Best Short Film at the 2023 LA Documentary Film Festival and Winner of the 2023 European Cinematography Awards.
