By Jen Schumann | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice
From court-ordered gag rules to the looming threat of custody loss, this isn’t hypothetical — it’s happening now. Colorado families gathered at the Rocky Mountain Summit in early April to share what it means to raise children under a system that increasingly treats concern as abuse.
What happened at the Summit
Held April 6 in Englewood, the event brought together medical professionals, whistleblowers and families.
Their message was clear: parents are being sidelined by courts, schools and legislation that favors affirm-only practices. And proposed legislation like HB25-1312 may take things further, redefining parental objection as emotional abuse under the law.
The Summit marked a milestone for 14-year-old Chloe Lee, who spoke publicly about her experience for the first time. Chloe explained how an afterschool art club introduced her to gender ideology without her parents’ knowledge. “Going to the club offered me instant community if I just called myself transgender or gay.”
“I felt really accepted and I felt really loved, but that’s how they get you,” Chloe shared. “A term my mom likes to use is glitter bombing.”
Her mother later shared that Chloe’s exposure to these ideas led to a mental health spiral. “We saw a Christian counselor who was afraid to touch the issue. And essentially Chloe spiraled into such a deep depression that she left us a suicide note in December of 2021,” Erin said.
She also revealed that Chloe was one of four girls from the same club who became suicidal within the same two-week period in December 2020.
Chloe’s mother, Erin Lee, has since become one of Colorado’s most vocal advocates for parental rights. Looking back, Erin sees a deliberate strategy behind what happened. “They referred to parents who find out what they’re doing as ‘barriers.’”
Chloe’s decision to speak publicly wasn’t easy. She was visibly nervous, but her courage became a defining moment of the day. For attendee Jill Cullis, Chloe’s story and others like it revealed a deeper truth. “This wasn’t hate. It was heartbreak.”
When schools shut out parents
Florida mom January Littlejohn told the Summit audience how her 13-year-old daughter was socially transitioned at school — without her knowledge or consent.
It began when her daughter expressed confusion over her gender identity. The school counselor, without notifying either parent, created a “transgender support plan” and allowed the student to use a different name, new pronouns and access opposite-sex bathrooms.
“They misinterpreted FERPA,” Littlejohn said. “They claimed that children have a right to privacy from their parents, which they don’t.”
The district’s policy was later exposed to allow social transitioning behind parents’ backs if the child requested confidentiality. “They had a six-page plan.” Littlejohn added, “It asked questions like: What name should we use when we talk to your parents? What pronouns should we avoid using at home?”
Littlejohn said she only found out because her daughter mentioned a conversation in passing. “They didn’t call us. They didn’t email. They didn’t even tell us it happened.”
She later learned her case was not unique. “This is not just happening in Florida. It’s happening in school districts across the country,” she said. “And parents have no idea.”
Court orders, gag rules and blocked voices
But some of the most chilling consequences are already happening inside Colorado courtrooms.
One Colorado father, speaking on condition of anonymity due to an ongoing custody battle, said he brought his 14-year-old son to the Summit in hopes of exposing him to different viewpoints.
“My purpose in bringing him to the Summit was to show him that there are dissenting opinions. And that the transgender feelings he has are not innate.” He added, “Although my ex-wife and I have a 50/50 split custody, she was able to obtain a court order to allow her full power of medical decision over [our son’s] treatment.”
His son is now on puberty blockers. The father shared his frustration about being unable to meaningfully discuss this decision with his son. “She was also able to get a gag order that prohibits me from discussing anything transgender related with my son.”
It’s the kind of legal silencing the Summit warned about: a father unable to speak to his own child about what he believes is happening.
Despite the order, he found quiet moments with his son throughout the Summit. “After every speaker, my son and I had a short conversation to see what each one of us thought of the statement,” he shared. “Some he agreed with. Some he did not.”
He added that he didn’t offer unsolicited opinions, explaining, “I kept my opinions to myself and only expressed them when he asked.”
He credits the event’s organizers and support network with helping him stay grounded. “CPAN, Lori Gimelshteyn specifically and a private parent support group I attend once a month – have been my salvation.” He added, “I am now convinced I am not alone – and that things can change.”
A self-described Libertarian, he is not optimistic about the direction Colorado is heading. “A single party system always leads to tyranny, and we are seeing that with [HB25-1312],” he said. “The party happens to be in the pocket of the activist groups and the medical establishment.”
He said he has no issue with his son identifying as gay or transgender one day — but only when he’s old enough to fully understand what that means. “Personally I think my son is gay. Either way is just fine with me,” he said. “But not until then.”
For him, the issue isn’t identity — it’s timing, medical risk and the fear that his child is being swept into something he can’t yet grasp. “I believe in waiting,” he shared, “and letting kids be kids first.”
The data they don’t want to hear
Whistleblower Jamie Reed, a former case manager at a pediatric gender clinic was a panelist at the event. She shared that she once supported gender-affirming care until she began noticing alarming trends.
She described a dramatic shift in the patient population during her time at the Washington University Transgender Center, where more and more young girls — many with complex psychological histories — were seeking hormones.
“They were now 80% girls.” Reed added, “They all had serious, significant mental health comorbidities.”
She said patients came in with autism, PTSD, eating disorders, ADHD and histories of self-harm — but these conditions were often overlooked in favor of immediate affirmation.
Why HB25-1312 raises the stakes
If passed, HB25-1312 would embed gender identity affirmation into Colorado law — potentially classifying a parent’s refusal to use a child’s chosen name or pronouns as emotional abuse.
For families like the anonymous father, it would solidify what courts are already doing. “In the eyes of the state,” said CPAN’s Lori Gimelshteyn, “affirming reality will be considered coercive control.”
If passed, HB25-1312 would punish the very thing parents are supposed to do — slow down, ask questions and protect their children.
A parent’s gut check
Jill Cullis, a retired high school social studies teacher, said she came to the Summit to better understand what’s happening on the front lines of gender ideology and parental rights.
“There’s so much noise on this issue, it’s hard to know who to believe.” She added, “But after hearing these families – it’s clear something is wrong.”
Cullis said she doesn’t identify with a political side. “I didn’t come in with an agenda — I just really wanted to know what’s happening to kids right now.”
What she found was a room full of parents, not partisans.
She added, “You shouldn’t lose custody just because you say, ‘Wait, let’s slow down.’ That’s not abuse. That’s being a parent.”
Many speakers at the Summit echoed that plea: let children grow up first. Let parents stay involved. And above all, stop labeling caution as cruelty.
“Do not make it easier for the advocacy groups and the courts to separate children from their parents and to only expose them to one side of a very complex issue,” the father said.
Cullis said she hopes others can attend future events like it. “I think if more people could attend something like this summit, they’d at least understand that the concerns aren’t coming from hate — they’re coming from love.”