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mirai-e-jump · 11 months ago

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Animage March 2024 Issue ft. Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger Main Cast Member Interviews (translations below)

Publication: February 8, 2024 (between episodes 47-48)

-Their six hearts are now united as one-

Sakai Taisei: Gira Husty/KuwagataOhger King of Shugoddam. In actuality, he's a being created by Dagded. He vows to his older brother Racules, who had been fighting to save their people, that he'll carry on his will as king.

Watanabe Aoto: Yanma Gast/TomboOhger King of N'kosopa. He was brainwashed by Hilbil, and was about to be consumed by the power that he possessed, but after being punched by Gira, he snaps out of it and they defeat Hilbil.

Murakami Erica: Hymeno Ran/KamakiriOhger Queen of Ishabana. While she was conflicted by the possibility of conquering death through the eternal life that Jeramie possessed, she was determined to use it to defeat Grodie.

Hirakawa Yuzuki: Rita Kaniska/PapillonOhger King of Gokkan and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. They trust Morphonia, their retainer who they've known since law school, and entrusts Gokkan to her as their potential successor.

Kaku So: Kaguragi Dybowski/HachiOhger Lord of Toufu. Wishing for the happiness of his younger sister Suzume, who is in love with Racules, he decides to remove her as a potential successor. Together with Rita, they seal away Minongan.

Ikeda Masashi: Jeramie Brasieri/Spider Kumonos King of the Bugnarak. He was born between a human and a Bugnarak, and wishes for both to coexist. He teaches his people, the Sanagim, how to live hand in hand with others. _

The Six Kingdom Unusual Incident Countermeasure Lifesaving Force, also known as: Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger. Centering around the kings of the six kingdoms of Chikyu - Gira, Yanma, Hymeno, Rita, Kaguragi, and Jeramie, it's an alliance formed so they can fight a common enemy, free of personal interests and across all borders.

The kings, who are the rulers of their counties, often took different actions after the formation of the Royal Sentai due to their pride, responsibility, and the mission and beliefs that they held in their hearts. Still, it's also true that a solid bond was formed through their battles.

The event that symbolized this was the second "Wrath of God" by the awakened Grodie. Making the most of their abilities and the power of their countries, the kings trusted each other, and skillfully worked together to bring the situation under control, achieving a miracle of zero casualties.

Even though they talk about it being for the benefit of their country or their own mission, the concern they have for their citizens is mutual. They may never get used to each other, but they don't hesitate to join forces when there's an emergency. This sense of distance and detachment is perhaps the greatest characteristic of the Royal Sentai.

The only remaining enemies are Kamejim, the last of the Uchu Five Jesters, and the Uchu King Dagded, who is responsible for everything. However, the Royal Sentai still don't have the means to defeat Dagded, who possesses unparalleled power. As the decisive battle between the Royal Sentai and Dagded approaches, let's see how it goes down until the final moment! _

-Gira's best scene!-

Murakami: My favorite scene is when he's eating a daikon radish in episode 4! (laughs).

Kaku: How nostalgic!

Murakami: I really liked it! Also, his "archaic smile" (episode 11).

Sakai: Ah! Towards the beginning!

Murakami: Yeah, the child of god Gira. The part with robo Gira was funny too. It's unforgettable.

Watanabe: I liked when he said "Woyal armz!" (episode 45).

Hirakawa: He said something like that (laughs).

Ikeda: That was cute.

Murakami: I liked that too (laughs).

Ikeda: His pill bug (pill taxi) outfit was also cute.

Sakai: I also liked the pill bug costume. And then, there was the confusing scene with Kaguragi towards the end……(episode 15).

Ikeda: The, "Laugh for me!" part. It's cool that you said it so seriously while looking like that.

Kaku: It was a passionate scene.

Ikeda: Jeramie was also watching that exchange nearby, so I remember that scene well. It was also funny to hear him say things like "Poopsopa" (episode 2).

Sakai: I wish I didn't say that.

Hirakawa: I think for me it's the trial scene in episode 5. Out of all the members, Rita was the only one who strongly judged Gira, and I remember Gira's reaction and the change in his facial expression when they told him the facts one by one during the trial. As the presiding judge, they're the only one looking directly at Gira's expressions.

Kaku: That seems to be the case now that you mention it!

Watanabe: As for cool scenes, I like the part in episode 17 when he dodges Yanma's fist. Taisei and I watched it back together 2 or 3 times and said, "Oh! This is it! This is it!" (laughs).

Sakai: Gira is often by someone's side. If it's a main episode for Yanma, he's by Yanma's side, and it's the same for the other. I think that main episodes with Gira being alone are probably the least common.

Kaku: That's true.

Sakai: Still, that's what I really like about them.

Kaku: I think for me, it's when he angrily armed himself with the royal armor in episode 29. When Jeramie betrayed them along with Gerojim.

All: Oh~!

Hirakawa: The part with Hilbil! He said, "That wasn't for you."

Kaku: Right.

Hirakawa: It was definitely cool when the beam of light shined from his eyes.

Kaku: Also, the scene where Gira's face turns into King-Ohger (episode 40).

Sakai: That might be my favorite.

All: (laughs).

Ikeda: Your facial expressions were good too (laughs).

Watanabe: The day after the broadcast, we called Taisei "King-Ohger" (laughs).

Sakai: I was the only one who truly became King-Ohger, so, it was an honor.

All: (burst out laughing).

Hirakawa: It's definitely special (laughs). Gira also has a good character song. I especially like the beginning.

Sakai: The English part. I think it matches Gira's worldview really well.

Ikeda: It's like a culmination.

Sakai: Right, Gira's a culmination.

Kaku: Eh? Shuu"taisei"? (*shuutaisei = culmination)

Ikeda: Yes, you got it (laughs).

Murakami: You're so quick at making puns like that……(laughs).

-Yanma's best scene!-

Kaku: My favorite was, (waving his hand) "Gi~ra~!"

All: "I've come to help you~!"

Murakami: The one where Gerojim impersonates him (episode 8).

Watanabe: That episode was my first time at Mt. Iwafune (a reoccuring location in the Super Sentai series), so I was really excited (laughs).

Hirakawa: Before filming, he looked at the mountain while brushing his teeth and kept saying things like, "Yikes" and "Amazing."

All: (laughs).

Hirakawa: When the camera was pointing at him, he was all smiley and doing peace signs (laughs). In the Yanma, or rather, Aoto scenes, he seemed to be having alot of fun during the body swap episode (episode 28) (laughs). It was funny.

Watanabe: I'm glad you weren't angry at me.

Hirakawa: I wasn't angry (laughs).

Kaku: You kept rolling your eyes (laughs).

Sakai: Do you feel like your range of acting has expanded because of that?

Hirakawa: Yeah, it's expanded. Yanma played Rita in various ways, so when I returned to being Rita, I think my range of the role expanded abit.

Watanabe: I see.

Hirakawa: I don't think you do (laughs).

Murakami: For me, I think it's the "Guess I've become a privileged person." scene (episode 35). Up until that point, Yanma often stood his ground, so I like how he accepted the situation as he watched N'kosopa burn.

Watanabe: That scene was made to look like it was in the evening, but we filmed it first thing in the morning. Furthermore, it was the first scene to be filmed for that episode (laughs).

Hirakawa: That's rough (laughs).

Murakami: Amazing (laughs). He talked about having privileges before with Hymeno, so I was wondering if he found himself back there by chance.

Watanabe: Yeah, he talked about it in episode 7. For scenes in N'kosopa, the hacking battle was also hard……(episode 2).

Kaku: It was really cold, wasn't it?

Watanabe: I couldn't stop my body from shaking or my teeth from chattering. I'll never forget that. I was only calm during the actual performance.

Ikeda: You were extremely focused.

Kaku: I'd name that one as one of the best scenes.

Hirakawa: I'd agree. You worked hard and it paid off.

Ikeda: There were two scenes that I particularly liked with Yanma. One was the scene where he announced himself to his opponent, Daigorg (episode 17). The way he said it was totally different from how he usually said it, and it was very manly. The other was when he was being manipulated by Jeramie (episode 36).

Murakami: That one was funny (laughs).

Ikeda: The awkward dance performance was so good that I bursted out laughing (laughs).

Watanabe: I learned the choreography from Ikeda Sensei.

All: (laughs).

Watanabe: I was told to improvise that scene, but I have no knowledge when it comes to dancing. I asked Masashi for advice, and he taught me the Awa Odori dance of Tokushima, his hometown (laughs). He really helped me out at that time.

Sakai: For me, it's episode 44. In episode 17, Gira dodges Yanma's punch, but in this episode, it's reversed. As I played the role, I was moved, as I was reminded of those days.

Watanabe: And after that, when we beat Hilbil, it wasn't a parody, but I said the same line as in episode 2, being, "Know your place!"

Sakai: That's right!

Watanabe: That was real hot.

Ikeda: Gira and Yanma have quite a few scenes showing the passionate friendship between them, don't they? Truly, a great duo.

-Hymeno's best scene!-

Watanabe: I think I'd pick the body swap (episode 29).

Hirakawa: The way she said "Royal Arms!" was amazing.

Murakami: I'm sorry for doing something that Kaguragi wouldn't do (laughs).

Kaku: It's mutual (laughs).

Watanabe: Matchless Murakami

Hirakawa & Kaku: Matchless Murakami (laughs).

Kaku: I haven't been able to watch the footage yet (at the time of this interview), but it looks like episode 46 will also produce some great scenes.

Watanabe: Yeah, it's between Jeramie and Hymeno. They said some wise words.

Kaku: The movie was also very good.

Sakai: I also really like, "No one can do it but me," when she saves Racules (episode 42). I feel that she's full of confidence.

Kaku: That was really cool. It had a "Black Jack" feel to it. (*character from manga series of the same name)

Murakami: I feel that most of the memorable scenes for Hymeno are related to her family and life.

Kaku: Also, the rage filled fight against Jeramie (episode 14).

Ikeda: I was scared at that time (laughs).

Murakami: Sorry for being so strong (laughs).

Watanabe: In the episode before that, we were beaten up by Jeramie, but this time Jeramie was instantly defeated by Hymeno.

All: (laughs).

Hirakawa: The power balance turned out to be amazing (laughs).

Sakai: There are quite alot of angry scenes.

Murakami: That's true.

Kaku: Especially when it comes to her family.

Murakami: Yeah, the word "you" comes out. I thought it was out of character for Hymeno, but that's what happens when it comes to family matters. (*informal "you" was used)

Sakai: When she got mad at Jeramie, Gira told her that it makes her face ugly.

Murakami: I remember the Director telling me at the time to "make an ugly face." (laughs).

Sakai: I feel kinda bad (laughs).

Hirakawa: For me, it'd have to be episode 30. It's the scene where she faces Grodie. As Rita, she stopped me when I was trying to use the secret technique, so I feel like there was a strong bond that formed between the two of us. It was filmed during the really hot season.

Murakami: It was really tough! I wasn't used to filming on location because we usually only film in the studio, so I was thinking, "I want to be freed from this heat!" (laughs).

Hirakawa: Well, we overcame the filming process by supporting each other. We gained alot from each other through the performance, and the relationship between Rita and Hymeno was established from episode 30, so it was very memorable. It's always touching no matter how many times I watch it.

Ikeda: The episode where Kamejim disguised himself as Hymeno was also good (episode 36).

All: Ah~!

Ikeda: The disguised Hymeno's performance as a villainess was amazing, and I think it showed the strength and beauty of the real Hymeno. I also loved how she said "Let's dance!" with so much energy (episode 34).

Hirakawa: You say that all the time (laughs).

Murakami: That's what Sakanashi Yume-san (KamakiriOhger's Suit Actor) says, so I get really excited when I say it (laughs).

Ikeda: Your pronunciation was also good.

Watanabe: I sometimes want to try and adlib in some English.

Ikeda: I get the impression that she uses English when she's agitated (laughs).

Murakami: That's what happens when I try to show her innocence (laughs).

-Rita's best scene!-

Kaku: For Rita……I guess we can't leave out the idol episode, huh? (episode 38).

Watanabe: Obviously.

Sakai: I think the idol episode is my favorite too. There's a scene where Gira fights with them over the Moffun picture book.

Hirakawa: That's right, that's right. The part with, "Moffun isn't needed anymore, right?!" We practiced that alot, didn't we? Things like, "I'll go this way."

Kaku: Oh~!

Hirakawa: We ran around alot.

Ikeda: I also liked when they changed into the royal armor with the idol costume. Girls must've loved that.

Sakai: It was like Sailor Moon.

Hirakawa: I spoke in a lower voice than usual. Rita was irritated.

Ikeda: Yeah, they were mad.

Hirakawa: Right, that's why it was very low.

Kaku: For upcoming episodes, there's another cool scene in episode 48.

Hirakawa: They say something to Yanma.

Sakai: It was cool.

Kaku: Also, Rita is silly when they eat something like dangos. They try to eat it from above their high collar (episode 5).

Murakami: Rita and food are a good match, huh?

Hirakawa: Eating scenes are pretty difficult. Ultimately, I couldn't even eat those dangos.

Kaku: Is that so?

Hirakawa: Originally, that scene was alot longer, as I was trying out different ways of eating it.

Ikeda: I also like the scene where they dive to grab Moffun.

Murakami: Ah! When they were tricked by Dagded! (episode 31).

Ikeda: Right, Hymeno was playing the role of the plushie.

Hirakawa: Rita shouts, "Moffun!" and lunges for it. My voice was added later during the dub.

Watanabe: Ah, "that one" is probably my best scene (laughs).

Hirakawa: Which? (laughs).

Murakami: He's laughing so hard (laughs).

Watanabe: The scene in episode 4 where Kaguragi calls Rita. It's the part where they walk very slow. Rita, in the beginning, every time they walked, they went super slow.

All: (laughs).

Murakami: It was the same for episode 5. They were reeeally slow (laughs).

Watanabe: I was like, "Can't you just walk normally?!"

All: (burst out laughing).

Hirakawa: You wouldn't stop complaining (laughs). He was saying things like, "Walk so I can hear you!" (laughs).

Watanabe: I want you all to watch it again (laughs).

Murakami: I think I really like the body swap episode (episode 28). If you look closely, you'll see that they're like a DJ (laughs).

Kaku: Yeah (laughs).

Murakami: Normally, Rita can't really break their character, right? That's why I really liked seeing Hirakawa Yuzuki when her screws were loosened. It was also funny to see them trying to get everyone in prison to go home.

Kaku: The "Yay!" part.

Hirakawa: The "careful on your way back" scene.

Murakami: Dialog like that wasn't written in the script.

Hirakawa: I was told to "Just do what fits" (laughs). I thought alot about what to do.

Watanabe: Also, they had such a happy face when they talked to Gira, who was in Jeramie's body.

Hirakawa: It's the part where they say, "We stomp him out and the problem will be solved." Rita never smiles, so I thought I'd show their teeth!

-Kaguragi's best scene!-

Murakami: I really like your interactions with Suzume. I especially like the scenes when Iroki appears from 17 years ago.

Kaku: Episode 37, right?

Murakami: Right. That episode depicted Kaguragi's determination and resolve, and the way he armed himself with the royal armor through the katana was cool.

Kaku: Well, I thought I had been forgiven for everything.

All: (laughs).

Ikeda: I want you to sell me that katana.

Sakai: I'd pick the scene with Iroki from that episode. The exchange with her while the castle was burning was really amazing.

Ikeda: When Suzume first appeared, his "siscon" behavior was uncanny but cute (episode 15).

Kaku: It's not Suzume (acting that way)? (laughs).

Ikeda: Right, it's Kaguragi (laughs).

Watanabe: For scenes with Suzume, I liked the look on his face during Racules and Suzume's wedding (episode 20).

Kaku: He was abit dazed and confused (laughs).

Watanabe: I really like Kaguragi's facial expressions. At some point, you mentioned that the way you smile is based on Ghibli films.

Kaku: Yeah, I think we talked about that.

Watanabe: I remember thinking, "I didn't know he had such an approach!" The scene in episode 39, where Kaguragi looks up at the night sky after defeating Goma made me think, "Ah, this has a Ghibli feel to it!"

All: Ah~!

Watanabe: The way he grinned was very Ghibli like (laughs). It's hard for me to explain it well though.

Ikeda: Does it feel alittle creepy?

Murakami: The smile didn't match the setting, so it's very memorable.

Watanabe: It comes off as creepy and cute at the same time.

Kaku: Cute? (laughs).

Ikeda: Also, there's that other best scene too. His sleeping face when he swaps bodies with Hymeno (episode 28).

Watanabe: The sleeping face of an angel.

Ikeda: An angel (laughs). The sigh that came from him……what else can I say?

Watanabe: An angel's breath.

All: (laughs).

Kaku: You're teasing me~ (laughs).

Murakami: Can you please stop making yourself cuter than the "real one"? (laughs).

Kaku: No, no, the "real one" is cuter than me, right?

Ikeda: (looking at Murakami) Your face is becoming bright red (laughs).

Murakami: Eh? You're kidding?!

Sakai: It's really red (laughs).

Hirakawa: I think it's episode 45 for me. Kaguragi and Rita didn't have that much of a relationship with each other. They didn't have that many scenes together in that episode either.

Kaku: That's true. It's because they're both together with Morphonia and Suzume.

Hirakawa: Right. I really enjoyed the scene where the two of them used the power of the King's Proof.

Kaku: I also became a red oni.

Murakami: That was amazing (laughs).

Hirakawa: That red oni was wild (laughs).

Ikeda: He was as red as Marie's face just now.

All: (burst out laughing).

Kaku: My bad~ (laughs).

Murakami: I seriously need you to cut it out (laughs).

Watanabe: The person in charge of being cute for King-Ohger is me though~

All: (laughs).

Hirakawa: He went and said it (laughs).

Ikeda: You're putting yourself in a dangerous position right now.

Watanabe: These two guys here (Murakami and Kaku) are tough.

Kaku: Does that include me? (laughs).

-Jeramie's best scene!-

Sakai: There's alot for Jeramie.

Murakami: First, there's the battle with Desnarak (episode 26). I really liked that one.

Kaku: We made fun of it by imitating the "It's bright…" scene.

Hirakawa: It's funny when the person who actually fought says it (laughs).

Kaku: Still, that scene was good. While recording the dub, I actually cried.

Hirakawa: That's true, I could hear you sniffling next to me.

Ikeda: Immediately after the recording he said, "I can use this line when inviting someone out to a drinking party."

All: (laughs).

Watanabe: "You're coming too," right? (laughs).

Hirakawa: That's what he said (laughs).

Kaku: Yeah, that's right (laughs).

Hirakawa: I think for me, it's the scene where he declares the founding of his nation in the live broadcast to the people (episode 26).

Kaku: It was something about humans and Bugnarak joining hands.

Hirakawa: Right, "I want you to pass on the story that we were able to reconcile." That speech was really good.

Murakami: I think Jeramie's slightly mischievous and childlike nature is also a key point. It was the same when he was manipulating Yanma in episode 36, or the episode with Racules and the whoopie cushion (episode 19). I guess I like those mischievously funny scenes. There are alot of cool scenes though.

Kaku: It was really cool when the Spider Mask came off (episode 11).

Hirakawa: He flung off his cloak

Kaku: I used to imitate the line, "I'm just an old fashioned storyteller."

Ikeda: And you were good at it.

Kaku: That's when the Jeramie Brasieri competition started, hosted by me (laughs).

Ikeda: Oh yeah. "Is there anyone better than me?!" Isn't that what you usually said?

All: (laughs)

Kaku: That's right.

Sakai: I wonder what it was like stepping on Jeramie (episode 37).

Watanabe: We were trying to eat Grodie's rice balls in Toufu. Gira, Yanma and Hymeno trampled him.

Sakai: It was surprising to see that Gira would step on Jeramie, and I had to put alittle effort into it during filming (laughs).

Ikeda: Yanma was rubbing my butt (laughs).

Kaku: That was funny (laughs). I don't know why Jeramie was being stepped on, since the episode didn't depict that part.

Sakai: I wonder if Jeramie was desperately trying to stop Gira and the others. He gets pushed too hard, and then that happens.

Hirakawa: He gets crushed by three people.

Murakami: Sorry about that time.

Ikeda: Hymeno was the nicest.

Watanabe: It's episode 29 for me. After Jeramie finishes giving his fake speech, Jeramie's song (The Prophet) plays when the five fight.

Hirakawa: It was good!

Watanabe: Jeramie wasn't there, but it felt like the six of them were fighting.

Ikeda: In that scene, you could see the relationship between the five of them from their expressions.

Murakami: It was also sad and beautiful when he said, "Sweet dreams" and then disappeared.

Sakai: It was great (applauding).

Ikeda: Thank you.

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allthebrazilianpolitics · 3 months ago

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Elon Musk taps out in X fight

After a long — and often tiresome — political, judicial, and philosophical feud over the use of X (formerly Twitter) in Brazil, the proxy battle between Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes and tycoon Elon Musk has seemingly reached its conclusion, with Mr. Moraes on top.

This week, the ban was finally lifted and the social media network is once again operational in Brazil.

In previous discussions, The Brazilian Report highlighted how the platform was hemorrhaging users, not only losing its entire Brazilian user base but also seeing significant drops in key markets such as the United Kingdom and the U.S.

It appears that pressure from investors — directed largely at Musk — forced the company to comply with the regulations set by Justice Moraes to resume the platform’s operations in the country.

That process, however, was not a smooth one.

#brazil #brazilian politics #politics #twitter #elon musk #alexandre de moraes #supreme federal court #image description in alt #mod nise da silveira

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justinspoliticalcorner · 1 month ago

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Erin In The Morning:

In a groundbreaking development for the care of transgender youth in France, the French Society of Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetology has released what is being called the first French national medical consensus on trans youth care. The document’s release comes as a variety of other countries consider the politically-influenced guidelines from the Cass Review in the United Kingdom, which has since been heavily criticized and its recommendations rejected by multiple medical societies in other countries. Importantly, the new guidelines recommend transgender youth care, denounce a “wait-and-see” approach for transgender adolescents, and promote individualized care for every transgender patient.

The guidelines, described as both robust and extensive, were meticulously prepared. According to the document, one to three authors were assigned to each section, conducting comprehensive literature reviews. Their findings were then refined through multiple iterations, with input from the broader group until a consensus was achieved. Finally, the recommendations underwent review by external experts. The result is a thorough and authoritative set of guidelines aimed at providing clear direction for doctors caring for transgender youth in France. The guidelines encompass a wide range of care recommendations for transgender youth, offering official support for puberty blockers and gender-affirming hormone therapy. Regarding puberty blockers, the guidelines emphasize their role in allowing transgender youth to explore their gender identity without the added distress of undergoing puberty, while also reducing the need for future surgeries. For hormone therapy, the recommendations advocate its use for transgender youth who meet the criteria outlined in the ICD-11, ensuring an individualized and evidence-based approach to care.

The recommendations strongly oppose the “wait-and-see” approach for transgender adolescents, often referred to as “gender exploratory therapy.” This practice, considered a form of conversion therapy, seeks to attribute a transgender person’s identity to external factors rather than recognizing it as authentic, delaying access to care—often until adulthood. The guidelines reject this method, stating it “does not reduce psychological distress” and instead “increases the risk of committing suicide and can affect psycho-affective and cognitive development.” These findings align with a report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control showing that 25% of transgender youth in the United States have attempted suicide, alongside another study in Nature Human Behavior indicating that anti-trans laws, including healthcare bans, have caused up to a 72% increase in suicide attempts.

[...] These guidelines are poised to resonate both in France and globally. As countries and major medical associations increasingly distance themselves from the U.K.’s Cass Review—criticized for its connections to SPLC-designated hate groups—the scientific consensus continues to affirm the importance of gender-affirming care for transgender youth. Their release comes just one day before the U.S. Supreme Court hears oral arguments on healthcare bans targeting transgender youth across the United States. In a climate where medical care for trans youth is under relentless political attack, guidelines like these offer a beacon of evidence-based practice and will be instrumental in shaping a future where access to essential care is protected and secured for all.

Unlike much of the world, especially the UK ([cough]Cass Review[/cough]) and red states in the US, France has introduced guidelines on gender-affirming care that affirmatively recommend the practice.

#France #Transgender Rights #Transgender #Cass Review #LGBTQ+#World News #Western Europe

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nando161mando · 1 year ago

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"There’s an anti war protest in London today. Also one in my local area on Sunday. The London ones will likely continue until there is a ceasefire.

That’s possibly the best use of me, although can’t make London today.

I’m not going to tell anyone how they should respond or think. If this info is relative to your interests and you didn’t know about the protests, now you know."

@antifainternational @anarchistmemecollective @radicalgraff @kropotkindersurprise

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mariacallous · 1 month ago

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When the Supreme Court hears oral arguments Wednesday in a major fight over Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for minors, conservatives defending the law plan to point to an unexpected place as a model: Europe.

Two decades ago, Republicans appeared allergic to foreign influence on the U.S. legal system, decrying Supreme Court decisions that looked abroad — often to Europe — for guidance on culture-war issues like gay rights and the death penalty.

Now, that aversion seems to have eroded. Lawyers and legislators on the right are embracing recent moves to restrict some types of care for transgender minors in four European countries. And these American conservatives are using them as evidence that new bans or limits on such treatment in Tennessee and 25 other states are not only prudent — but also consistent with the U.S. Constitution.

“Systematic reviews by national health authorities in Sweden, the United Kingdom, Finland, and Norway have all concluded that the harms associated with these interventions are significant, and the long-term benefits are unproven,” Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti wrote in defense of the state’s ban on transition-related medical care for minors.

The law, passed last year, bans hormone treatments or surgeries for minors that would allow them “to identify with, or live as, a purported identity inconsistent with the minor’s sex” or to treat “purported discomfort or distress from a discordance between the minor’s sex and asserted identity.” Challengers to the law, along with the Biden administration, asked the high court to declare the measure unconstitutional after a federal appeals court upheld it. The challengers say the law discriminates on the basis of gender in violation of the 14th Amendment.

A brief from Tennessee state officials defending the law quotes no fewer than three times a passage from the appeals court ruling that upheld the law, saying: “Some of the same European countries that pioneered these treatments now express caution about them and have pulled back on their use.”

The conservatives’ sudden affection for European medical standards and judgments rankles some transgender advocates, who say it’s a hypocritical about-face.

“I think it’s rich that folks that don’t look to Europe for anything, especially socialized medicine, for the guideposts on how to move forward with public policy, are citing any kind of medical policy” from Europe, said Sasha Buchert of Lambda Legal, an LGBTQ+ rights advocacy group.

Conservatives combat foreign influence on U.S. law

The conservative crusade against U.S. judges taking note of legal developments overseas reached a fever pitch in the 2000s.

“It certainly was extreme for a while,” said Austen Parrish, dean of the University of California at Irvine law school. “You had Supreme Court justices that were being threatened with death threats. ... There was this great pushback on anything foreign, because somehow it was giving up on American sovereignty, and we had to chart our own path.”

In 2005, as the anti-foreign-law frenzy was at its height, Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) suggested at confirmation hearings for John Roberts as chief justice that U.S. judges who cited foreign precedents should be subject to impeachment. Roberts pledged not to rely on foreign law himself but said removing judges who did would be a step too far.

“I’d accuse them of getting it wrong on that point, and I’d hope to sit down with them and debate it and reason about it,” Roberts said.

That same year, Justices Antonin Scalia and Stephen Breyer even faced off in a public debate that aired arguments for and against its use.

Justice Clarence Thomas also weighed in, declaring in a 2002 opinion a distaste for foreign influence that seemed to extend beyond legal rulings. “This Court … should not impose foreign moods, fads, or fashions on Americans,” he wrote in a death penalty case.

In the court’s seismic 2022 ruling overturning the federal constitutional right to abortion, the conservative majority tiptoed around the foreign law issue. Justice Samuel Alito’s majority opinion noted that the Mississippi legislature that passed the abortion restriction at issue in that case found that the U.S. was one of only seven countries that permitted elective abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy. He then relegated further discussion of that issue to a footnote.

The court’s liberal minority unapologetically embraced international practice as a reason to preserve Roe v. Wade. “American abortion law has become more and more aligned with other Nations,” Justices Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan wrote, adding that the nuances of those laws are important. “Most Western European countries impose restrictions on abortion after 12 to 14 weeks, but they often have liberal exceptions to those time limits, including to prevent harm to a woman’s physical or mental health.”

Some European countries rethink gender-affirming care

Complaints that some doctors were handing out puberty-blocking medication too widely have triggered reexamination of treatment practices in the United Kingdom, Sweden, Finland and Norway in recent years.

The highest-profile retreat came in the U.K., following a broad review of gender-affirming care by the National Health Service. The head of the review, Dr. Hilary Cass, concluded that studies about treatment for gender dysphoria were unreliable, that doctors were often not tending to patients’ other issues and there was a lack of attention to patients seeking to “detransition.”

“This is an area of remarkably weak evidence, and yet results of studies are exaggerated or misrepresented by people on all sides of the debate to support their viewpoint,” Cass wrote. “The reality is that we have no good evidence on the long-term outcomes of interventions to manage gender-related distress.”

After the findings in the so-called Cass review, released in draft form in 2022 and finalized in April, NHS stopped prescribing puberty blockers for those under 18 and closed the main NHS clinic in England offering gender-affirming care for minors.

Sweden, Finland and Norway have guidelines that reject certain treatments, such as surgery, for adolescents. But all three countries have some means for teenagers to access puberty blockers, often through clinical trials, according to briefs filed by outside parties with the Supreme Court.

“None of those countries have banned care in the way that Tennessee has,” said Chase Strangio of the American Civil Liberties Union, who is set to argue against the law at the Supreme Court on Wednesday. “None of those countries have taken away every pathway for adolescents to access the medical care that they need.”

While some transgender advocates have been highly critical of the Cass review and other steps that have limited treatments, Strangio was relatively positive about efforts by the European medical community to refine standards for gender-affirming care.

“I think the examples of Europe are often very distorted in the press,” Strangio told reporters on a video conference Monday. “What they’re actually showing us is tailored responses to ensure that people who need treatment get it.”

Strangio acknowledged some risks to puberty blockers and other treatment, but said that alone doesn’t justify an all-out ban on the use of those drugs for minors with gender dysphoria. He noted the same drugs remain available for use in other situations.

“In all other contexts, what Tennessee does and what other governments do when there is beneficial care that carries risk is to inform patients and to attempt to minimize risks. That is what is going on in Europe. That is not what is going on in Tennessee,” he said.

Some judges were unimpressed by Europe examples

U.S. District Judge Eli Richardson, who blocked Tennessee’s law last June, found similar flaws in the state’s arguments about new limits on transition-related medical care abroad. He said the recalibration of treatment in various countries isn’t akin to the flat prohibition on hormone treatment for transgender minors that Tennessee and other states have imposed.

“Defendants’ reliance on the practices of European nations is not an apt analogy where none of these countries have gone so far as to ban hormone therapy entirely,” Richardson said.

Richardson, an appointee of President Donald Trump, used language that harkened back to earlier conservative skepticism about the relevance of foreign examples to a U.S. court case.

“There is the additional problem that the Court can put only so much weight on the practice of other nations,” he wrote. “After all, the Court cannot outsource to European nations the task of preliminarily determining … the extent to which the treatments at issue are safe.”

Federal judges in Indiana and Florida also rejected similar arguments as they blocked gender-affirming care bans in those states.

A spokesperson for Skrmetti declined to comment for this story, but in a recent op-ed the Tennessee AG repeatedly and prominently invoked Europe’s moves on transition-related medical care.

“Medical research and practices in Europe support a cautious approach,” Skrmetti wrote.

Are conservatives invoking foreign law, or experience?

One scholar who has criticized some efforts to banish foreign law from the U.S. legal system noted that Tennessee isn’t invoking foreign statutes or court rulings.

“There has been this kind of hardcore talk of ‘no foreign law in American courts,’ which I think mostly stems from people not really thinking very hard about when it is you need to use it,” said Eugene Volokh of Stanford University’s Hoover Institution.

Volokh said he views the conservative states’ claims as more factual than legal.

“If the question is: Is youth gender medicine really likely to be effective? That’s something that you shouldn’t ignore … If the English and the Swedes and the Dutch say one thing, then that’s certainly evidence. It’s not dispositive evidence, but it’s certainly evidence,” he said.

Conservatives’ references to Europe at the Supreme Court in the current legal fight point not to court rulings or laws, or to facts or studies, but to medical practice guidelines and standards.

Those amount to national policy in some countries — particularly those with government-run health services, some legal experts say. And they note that urgings from judges like Thomas that U.S. courts ignore “foreign moods, fads or fashions” expressed a sentiment that appeared to go beyond rejecting black-letter law or judicial rulings.

“I definitely see the same thing playing out,” Seattle University law professor Sital Kalantry said.

“There was a big debate where conservatives freaked out about it when the liberals were using it. But now, if it seems to be conveniently supporting their ends, then they’re willing to make reference to international practice. ... We’re now at this place that both perspectives are selectively using international law and practice to support their predetermined end point.”

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pillarsalt · 1 month ago

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as someone who is genuinely truly gender critical (critical of conservative gender and transgenderism) i have never felt so alone in my life. conservatives hate me. liberals hate me. incels hate me. radfems hate me. men hate me. women hate me.

the supreme court of the united fucking kingdom is using talking points and lingo made up in 2010 by teenage girls bending over backwards to defend perverted men. the other side of the argument is brought by conservatives who at best wouldn't mind if we regressed women's rights back to the 1800s and at worst are actively trying to do so.

meanwhile, on a general society level, we have the aforementioned perverted men and their teenage supporters who, regardless of what year they were born, have not progressed past that 2010 mindset. they genuinely believe women is a feeling/aesthetic/opt-in-free-attention-machine. and in the other corner, the only corner with the potential to actually empower and defend women, we have a wave of radfems who can't even pretend to be tolerant of straight, bi, gnc, and/or autistic women for 2 seconds (sad and ironic because i highly suspect most of them are one of if not multiple of these things) who lay the blame of the actions and beliefs of perverted men on said women. because us not killing every man on sight means we're the reason they get away with everything.

i have never felt so alone. i don't think we're ever getting out of this. how do you cope with this?

Anon, I want to tell you, I have felt this way many times and I'm sure I will again. I totally understand the impending doom feeling. It's hard to escape. But I want you to know, you are absolutely not alone, not at all.

I also want you to know that unfortunately, bad news frequently overshadows good news, especially online. The shocking and horrific generate more media interest than the hard fought battles being won by people and groups who are interested in positive change. But positive change is happening, even when its hard to see right away. To quote Martin Luther King Jr.: "First, the line of progress is never straight. For a period a movement may follow a straight line and then it encounters obstacles and the path bends. It is like curving around a mountain when you are approaching a city. Often it feels as though you were moving backwards, and you lose sight of your goal: but in fact you are moving ahead, and soon you will see the city again, closer by."

WRT the tumblr-esque rhetoric influencing national policy: I truly believe we are advancing past what has been a weird ass period where this religious "no debate" thing dominates liberal politics. Liberals across the world, I believe, are realizing it's a losing game, and that we can't let people who deny basic reality dictate policy for everyone else. I really truly get where you're coming from, but as someone who's been paying attention to this since 2015/16ish, it seems to have peaked around 2020ish, and on a steady decline since then.

They're their own worst enemies: at first your average left of centre person thought of trans issues basically as very gender nonconforming gay people who experience extreme distress about their sex (and that's not to say these people don't still exist,) but now with the mercurial rise of trans activism as we know it, more and more average voters are exposed to realities of gender ideology like male rapists in women's prisons, males in women's sports, the medical exploitation of gender nonconforming kids, and so on. Even just anecdotally I have seen TONS more people speaking openly about their dissent, when they would have kept their mouths shut before. Now a widespread conservative backlash is absolutely not what we want, and it's why the liberal governments of the world need to step up and get their shit together right the fuck now. Conservatism is dangerous and we need to fight as hard as we can to stop it in its tracks. But with added and continued pressure from everyone who's working to do so, this WILL happen. We can make it happen.

In respects to what's troubling you about the radical feminism community, I understand where you're coming from there too. But again, it's a problem with the most vitriolic people having the loudest voices despite being in the minority. Radfems do not hate you. There are a rash of individuals who through rad/feminism (especially online) have found a great way to browbeat other women and feel morally superior. Any special interest group is going to have people who try to use it to their advantage for ego stroking and social status purposes. Please try to remember they are just people, like you. They can be, and often are, just plain wrong. You have no obligation to take anybody's word as gospel, even if they get mad at you for it.

I don't take anyone seriously who'd rather infight constantly than find common ground with her fellow woman, even if there's disagreement. Women's liberation is the number one priority when it comes to feminism, and as a woman, you have every right to be here. Don't take any bullshit personally, be confident but curious in your beliefs. And please don't give up, not on the world and not on feminism. You are a worthwhile person, things will look brighter sooner than later. I know this from experience. I hope you hang in there, you can message me any time or send another ask anonymously if you want. It's hard work to push through the doom, but you can do it. Be well! 💜💜💜

#ask

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