Parental rights advocates are sounding alarms over a controversial bill passed by the Colorado state House, warning that it could have far-reaching consequences for families—especially in child custody disputes—if parents refer to their children by their birth names or pronouns that don’t align with the child’s gender identity.

House Bill 25-1312, one of several measures backed by Democratic lawmakers earlier this month, introduces state-enforced gender identity policies in schools. It also redefines certain parental behaviors as “coercive control” in custody cases, including instances where a parent does not affirm a child’s stated gender identity.

Specifically, the bill instructs courts to treat actions such as “deadnaming, misgendering or threatening to publish material related to an individual’s gender-affirming health-care services” as coercive tactics when evaluating what serves a child’s best interests in custody and visitation matters.

If passed into law, the measure would establish the Kelly Loving Act, named in memory of a transgender man who was killed in a 2022 nightclub shooting in Colorado. The proposed law would also prohibit Colorado courts from recognizing out-of-state rulings that penalize parents who allow transgender-related medical care for minors.

Erin Friday, a longtime Democrat and vocal parental rights advocate, emphasized that the implications of this bill should concern individuals across the political spectrum. “The issue should be bipartisan,” she said, urging parents to challenge the legislation through legal action, public discourse, and civic engagement, including testimony at legislative hearings.

Both Friday and Colorado mother Erin Lee reject the notion that children can be born in the wrong body. The measure, which now awaits consideration in the state Senate, has drawn fierce debate. During a public hearing last month, a Democratic lawmaker compared parents opposing the bill to extremist groups, including “the KKK.”

“This is giving the authority to our state to take our children away if we don’t agree with these gender transitions, so it’s got huge ramifications for all parents, especially those in custody situations who are fighting with their ex-spouses to stop their children from being medicalized,” said Lee during a Monday appearance on Fox News’ The Faulkner Focus.

She continued, “It opens the door for all parents to potentially have their children forcibly removed by the state if they’re not willing to affirm their child’s mental health distress.”

Lee and Friday have deeply personal reasons for opposing the bill. Both women say their daughters once identified as boys, but they did not support their daughters’ transitions. In time, both daughters ceased identifying as transgender.

“This bill will not only determine that parents like Erin and I are abusers — both of us had Child Protective Services come to our home when we refused to call our daughter males — but this bill also affects the press and its freedom of the press, and it will require them to use the chosen name of a child, how they choose it, and any adult,” Friday cautioned. She also described the proposed legislation as a “massive First Amendment violation” if it goes into effect.