BAD DINNER GUEST

Parents of Trans Child Who Once Had Dinner With Texas AG Targeted by Terrible New Law

In 2016, when Texas tried to restrict trans students’ bathroom access, Amber Briggle invited Ken Paxton over for dinner with her 8-year-old son.

A family now under investigation in the wake of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s February opinion equating gender-affirming medical treatment with child abuse once crossed more intimate paths with the top legal officer. In 2016, when Texas saw protests against attempts to regulate bathroom usage for transgender students, Amber Briggle invited Paxton to her home to have dinner with her 8-year-old transgender son. Briggle recalled to The 19th how Paxton and her son washed up for dinner together. “He turns around and looks and says, ‘This is nice. It’s been a while since I had kids this age,’” Briggle said. But now, the Briggle family is under investigation for child abuse due to gender-affirming medical care they’ve provided for their child, so far having been interviewed by a Child Protective Services caseworker and undergone a home inspection. “Raising a transgender child in Texas has been one long political emergency,” they said in a statement. “It always seemed like this day would come. Now it has arrived.”