10-Year-Old Activist Kai Shappley on Advocating for Trans Kids in Texas Politics

April 16, 2021 / Kai Shappley/ by Yvonne S. Marquez

Kai Shappley gives testimony before the Senate Committee on State Affairs on Monday, April 12.

The Texas Senate:

“I dislike using my leisure time to plead with adults to make wise decisions,” said ten-year-old Kai Shappley in a Texas legislative session on Monday. “It saddens me that certain politicians exploit trans children like me to win votes from those who despise me simply for existing,” she addressed the Senate Committee on State Affairs. Her testimony quickly became a viral sensation.

This young trans rights advocate and actress, who resided in Pearland before relocating to Austin in 2018, voiced her opposition against two Senate bills, 1311 and 1646. These bills would bar her from accessing gender-affirming healthcare by making it illegal. SB 1311 seeks to forbid healthcare professionals from delivering affirming or transition-related healthcare to minors. It would also prevent a doctor’s malpractice insurance from covering gender-affirming care or transition-related treatments. Additionally, SB 1646 would go as far as to categorize a parent’s support for their trans child as “child abuse.” A parent who arranges for gender-affirming care for their child, which may include puberty-blocking medications for minors, would be deemed an abuser. This bill could potentially allow Child Protective Services to remove trans children from their parents' care.

These bills are just a few of the numerous proposals targeting trans youth. SB 29 would prohibit trans youths from participating in sports teams that align with their gender identity. This bill was approved by the Texas Senate on Thursday and is now moving to the House. House Bill 1399, which corresponds to SB 1311 and seeks to criminalize gender-affirming healthcare, has been passed by the House Committee on Public Health.

On Monday, after extensive discussion and testimony, Kai became the first trans child to present in front of the committee. The committee members met her testimony with silence, failing to ask follow-up questions. “Really, none of you are curious about my life?” she inquired before exiting the stand.

Later in the week, when I inquired what she hoped the senators had asked her, she quickly replied, “What does it feel like to live as a trans child in Texas?”

Upon our video call, Kai immediately made a playful face. She appeared as lively and cheerful as the yellow blouse she donned during her testimony. Already an experienced professional, she featured in a Netflix episode of The Baby-Sitters Club as Bailey, a trans child defended by Mary Anne at the hospital. Kai is notably lively when discussing her favorite subjects: her cats and Dolly Parton.

“One day Mom was playing [Dolly], and I thought, ‘Who is this dramatic-sounding lady?’” Kai recalled about the iconic singer. “After learning more about her, I realized she’s just like a taller version of me. She’s generous, gentle, and quite spirited.”

Among Kai’s preferred Dolly Parton tunes—emphasized with an “s”—are “Jolene,” “Love Is Like a Butterfly,” and “Coat of Many Colors.” While discussing the influential 2015 NBC film Dolly Parton’s Coat of Many Colors, she suddenly exclaimed, “Oh my goodness!” and glanced away from the screen. “Apologies, my cat’s making some outrageous expressions.” She was referring to Jake, her notably plump English tabby. Her other cat, Serenity, named after a Sailor Moon character, is exceptionally fluffy and ideal for snuggling.

Math and science are Kai’s top subjects in school. She finds the endless possibilities in science thrilling. “I can’t wait to dissect a frog!” she enthusiastically shared.

Since she was three years old, Kai has been her own advocate as a trans individual, according to Kimberly Shappley, her mother and a registered nurse. From a young age, Kai consistently expressed her gender identity to her mother.

“I emerged from my mother’s womb knowing exactly who I was,” Kai stated. “And then it dawned on me that my mother didn’t realize I’m truly me. I had to tell her, ‘Mom, I am definitely a girl,’” she said with emphasis.

Raised in a conservative, religious family, Kimberly initially attempted to “correct” Kai’s gender expression and would reprimand her for feminine behavior. However, Kimberly’s perspective shifted when Kai began praying to “go live with Jesus permanently.” This change occurred around the time Leelah Alcorn, a seventeen-year-old trans girl from Ohio, tragically ended her life, drawing global attention to the challenges trans youth face. Alcorn’s death became a pivotal moment for Kimberly to reconsider her views, determined to ensure her daughter’s survival.

Kimberly anticipated anti-trans legislation in Texas this year as legislatures in states like Alabama, Arkansas, and South Dakota started considering similar bills. After living near the Gulf Coast in Brazoria County for 26 years, Kimberly likened the current legislative session in Texas to a hurricane season. She pondered the severity of the impending legislative storm.

“Can we endure this and merely secure our defenses, or will this escalate to a category five storm where everything is destroyed, and we lose our home? It feels like we’re facing a category five,” she expressed.

Indeed, they have been confronting such storms for years. In 2017, Kai and her mother were thrust into the debate over so-called bathroom bills, which aimed to prevent transgender individuals from using restrooms and locker rooms corresponding to their gender identity. During her kindergarten years in Pearland, Kai’s school barred her from the girls’ bathroom, offering only the distant nurse’s bathroom as an alternative; this often resulted in embarrassing accidents. Kimberly advocated for her daughter in the Senate while Kai sat on her lap, and their plight was documented in an Emmy-award winning film.

“It wasn’t until the State of Texas forced me to advocate fiercely for her that I truly understood Kai as a trans individual,” Kimberly reflected.

The distress at her school became so intolerable that the family relocated to Austin, where more supportive local laws and school policies allowed Kai to feel more secure. The move was challenging. “We had to start anew. We lost our friends, our community, our church. I wish others could grasp the entire situation,” Kimberly remarked.

As new anti-trans legislation is considered, Kimberly fears another upheaval in their lives. Though Texas is all Kai knows and where Kimberly has spent much of her life, they plan to leave the state if the bills become law. “I invested all that time, energy, and money to settle in Austin. I could have used those resources to move to a state that would safeguard us. Instead, we’ve spent these last few years trying to establish roots and rebuild. It feels like we’re stuck in limbo,” she lamented.

When asked what trans children in Texas most need, Kai passionately exclaimed, “Laws that protect us, not ones that oppose us!”

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