A former professor of child psychology has won a legal battle against the University of Louisville in the US after being sacked for expressing concerns about transgender healthcare for young people.
Dr Allan Josephson, who previously served as division chief of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology at the university, claimed he was harassed, demoted and ultimately fired in 2017 following comments made at an external event.
A judge has now ruled that Dr Josephson’s right to free speech was violated, affirming that “public universities have no business punishing professors” for their views, according to the professor’s lawyer.
In autumn 2017, Dr Josephson participated in a Heritage Foundation panel discussing treatments for young people questioning their gender identity.
Dr Allan Josephson said that childhood gender dysphoria is a “social-cultural psychological phenomenon” that cannot be fully addressed with drugs and surgery
Alliance Defending Freedom
During the event, he said that childhood gender dysphoria is a “social-cultural psychological phenomenon” that cannot be fully addressed with drugs and surgery.
Dr Josephson advocated for exploring the root causes of children’s gender confusion rather than rushing to medical interventions.
He emphasised that while parents should “affirm” and “love” a child identifying as the opposite sex, they should not allow medical transition.
He told a panel: “You don’t affirm a bad idea.”
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Dr Allan Josephson served as division chief of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology at the University of Louisville
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Court documents revealed that Dr Josephson had raised concerns about the rapid prescription of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones as early as 2014.
He had previously served as an expert witness in cases, arguing that children lack the capacity to make life-altering medical decisions.
A week after the Heritage Foundation event, the university’s LGBT centre complained about Dr Josephson’s comments.
Dr Toni Ganzel, then dean of the School of Medicine, stated that his view “doesn’t reflect the culture we are trying so hard to promote”.
Following further complaints, Dr Josephson was demoted to a junior faculty role. He reported being ostracised and stripped of teaching duties over the next year.
In March 2023, a federal district court ruled in Dr Josephson’s favour. This decision was recently affirmed by the US Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, which stated that university officials will now stand trial.
The court wrote: “Viewing the evidence in the light most favourable to Josephson, as we must, Josephson has shown that he engaged in protected speech when he spoke as part of the Heritage Foundation panel.”
Senior counsel representing Dr Josephson Travis Barham said: “We look forward to continuing to protect Dr Josephson’s clearly established right to free speech and reminding all public universities that they are marketplaces of ideas.”