Amber Checky, a foster mom in Arizona, says that her 9-year-old transgender son isn’t allowed to attend Tonto Creek Camp, an educational and leadership summer camp in Payson, Arizona. Why? According to Checky, she received an email from the camp’s chief executive officer saying that because a camp staff member who “had a degree in this” was no longer coming, neither could her transgender son. It’s unclear what degree “this” refers to.
Checky, who is the child’s foster mother, told KNXV she was understandably disappointed about this turn of events."I think summer camp is really a place where foster kids can go to simply be kids," Checky said. "My child was looking forward to doing archery and kayaking and hanging out with other kids."
In terms of camp experience, Checky stresses that her son needed almost nothing out of the ordinary. She says they requested he have access to either a private bathroom or a bathroom with a curtain. And, because he’s a boy, he wants to stay in a tent with the other boys. Makes sense.
Before offering to refund the costs, Checky said the camp offered to house her son in a tent separate from everyone else. Checky’s family didn’t want that, and then, reportedly, came the no-go email.
"He was born female identified but feels in his brain and his heart that he is a boy," said Checky. "He's just a kid that wants to be a kid and at this point I can't even tell him why he's not allowed to go."
Mind you, the context that this child is openly transgender is incredibly important. According to GLSEN, trans youth face barriers at school and at home, and when it comes to self-esteem. For example, 75% of trans youth report feeling unsafe at school. Those who do go to school have lower GPAs than their cisgender counterparts, are more likely to skip school because of safety concerns, and are less likely to consider college.
The American Association of Pediatrics reports that levels of suicide attempts among trans youth and teens are terrifyingly high: 41% of non-binary youth reported that they had attempted suicide at some point, while 29% of trans female students said the same. More than half of trans male teens in the survey reported a suicide attempt.
What can help? According to the experts: acceptance—at home, at school, and yes, even at summer camp.
“How do you tell a 9-year-old who's accepted in every other aspect of their life, in their house and in their school that they can't go to summer camp," Checky continued.
ABC 15 Phoenix reports that the CEO of the summer camp has since reached out to Checky to resolve the situation, but no updates have yet been released.