CA Public School Bypasses Parents with 'Transition Closet' for Teens Who Want to Cross-Dress in Class

Steve Warren
02-25-2022

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A California public high school has started a "transition closet" to help teenagers hide their gender experimentation efforts from their parents. The school will provide clothes for transgender, non-binary, and gender exploring youth to change into outfits that match their preferred gender identity "to make them feel more like themselves." 

The Post Millennial reports Fremont High School in Oakland started a new chapter of "The Transition Closet" at the school.  The school is a part of the Oakland Unified School District. 

According to the outlet, the organization began at the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The group wrote about Fremont High's new chapter as the "first school-based Transition Closet" in a recent Facebook post. 

"We are extremely excited to begin our journey in working with Fremont Highschool of Oakland California, alongside our favorite Teacher of TikTok @justaqueerteacher," the post said. 

"The near future holds transition closet(s) and services throughout the school district for students of the Trans/Nonbinary/Intersex and additional LGBTQIA+ Community Members," the post continued. "We are currently in need of clothing donations to help kick start the first School Based Transition Closet." 

The group also asked for clothing donations. 

The Twitter account "Teachers Exposed" first reported on the effort, sharing the goal of the group and including a video of a teacher identified by The Post Millennial as Thomas Martin-Edwards, a Spanish teacher at the Oakland Unified School District and founder of the Queer Teacher Fellowship, explaining it. 

CBN News confirmed Martin-Edwards' identity and job description via his LinkedIn social media account. 

"The goal of the transition closet is for our students to wear the clothes that their parents approve of, come to school and then swap out into the clothes that fit who they truly are," Teachers Exposed wrote. 

"And I use the idea that this is like Superman changing in a phone booth. But that idea actually goes a lot further than that. Because Superman isn't Clark Kent. Clark Kent is actually the disguise. And when Clark Kent goes into the phone booth, he transforms into Superman, who is really just who he truly is, Kal-El. So this gives our trans students the opportunity to be the superheroes that we know they are," Martin-Edwards said in the 32-second video.

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During an interview posted to the social media platform Rumble, Martin-Edwards told host Alexander Brodie Switzer his principal approved the school district's first Transition Closet. 

"We'll be working with the organization The Transition Closet to provide clothes for transgender, non-binary, and gender exploring youth, who maybe don't have the access or the safety to get those clothes in their personal lives," he said. "They'll be able to come to school and change into the clothes that make them feel more at home and more like themselves. And I just think that's lovely."

According to The Post Millennial, the Transition Closet also has videos uploaded online including one that shows females who identify as trans males how to bind their breasts so they appear more masculine. 

CBN News reached out to the pro-family watchdog SaveCalifornia.com for their reaction to the Oakland high school's plan. 

In an email to CBN News, SaveCalifornia.com Founder and President Randy Thomasson warned California parents to get their children out of public schools before it's too late.

"This shows how far government-controlled schools have fallen. Sexually-confused children are mentally molested all the more, while parents are kept in the dark," Thomasson said. "Get your precious boys and girls out of the godless government schools, while you still can."

"There are only two sexes, male and female. You're male if you've inherited a Y chromosome from your biological father; if you haven't, you're female. Nothing can change this God-given fact of nature," he concluded. 

CBN News also contacted the Oakland Unified School District for comment. In an email to CBN News, Communications Director John Sasaki provided the following statement: 

"Oakland Unified School District supports all students and staff regardless of their gender identity or expression," the statement said. "In our world, there is far too much condemnation of people who are different, and not nearly enough acceptance and love. Fremont High School has been looking at partnering with what's called the 'Transition Closet.' This outstanding program is about giving students a place they can turn for answers and support that come without judgment or condemnation and is invaluable for helping students align their clothing with their identity."

"These services affirm and celebrate our students and often become avenues for improved communication with teachers, staff, and family members as students feel supported and seen," the statement continued. "Young people in all parts of our country struggle with these same issues, so we look forward to a time when they all have somewhere they can turn for the same acceptance, love, and support our students at Fremont High receive." 

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About The Author

Steve Warren is a senior multimedia producer for CBN News. Warren has worked in the news departments of television stations and cable networks across the country. In addition, he also worked as a producer-director in television production and on-air promotion. A Civil War historian, he authored the book The Second Battle of Cabin Creek: Brilliant Victory. It was the companion book to the television documentary titled Last Raid at Cabin Creek currently streaming on Amazon Prime. He holds an M.A. in Journalism from the University of Oklahoma and a B.A. in Communication from the University of
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