The Trump administration’s latest target: gender-neutral paper dolls Minnesota schools aren’t using

Even paper dolls can’t escape the Trump administration’s anti-transgender obsession.

Education Secretary Linda McMahon announced an investigation into Minnesota-based MyGender Dolls, saying parents had complained about the possibility that the dolls could be used in schools. Even though Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has denied any involvement in the product’s creation and state education officials have said there are no plans to use the dolls in classrooms, McMahon asserted that the state was plotting to hurt children.

“While Governor Walz and the radical left continue to funnel taxpayer dollars to perverted ideologies that can harm children, the Trump Administration is fighting to protect children’s innocence and defend parents’ role as the first and primary decision-makers in their child’s education,” McMahon said in a statement. “No four-year-old should be exposed to such material – especially without a parent’s knowledge or consent. ED will enforce the law to its fullest extent, putting parents and families firmly in the driver’s seat of their child’s education.”

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The Education Department will investigate whether teachers could expose children to the gender-neutral dolls in school and whether their use could violate the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment, which gives parents certain rights to inspect instructional materials used in publicly funded schools.

A website marketing the new product doesn’t suggest that the paper dolls are intended for general classroom instruction. It does list school counselors and educators as potential customers, along with mental health providers, pediatricians and allied health professionals. And while McMahon framed the investigation as a parental rights issue, the site also includes an apparently unfinished section for caregivers interested in learning more.

“MyGender Dolls are built for the professionals who support trans and gender diverse children in clinical and educational settings,” the website states. The product was developed by researchers at the University of Minnesota, but the university told CBS News that no taxpayer money funded the project.

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The Minnesota Department of Education also denied that the dolls would be used in the state’s public schools.

“The paper-cutout dolls will not be implemented in Minnesota K-12 public schools. They are intended for use by licensed professionals and clinicians. This is a University of Minnesota-led initiative, and the Minnesota Department of Education is not involved,” reads a statement the agency provided to the media, as reported by Yahoo News.

Of note, the Minnesota Department of Education denies any plans to use MyGender dolls in school..

“The paper-cutout dolls will not be implemented in Minnesota K-12 public schools. They are intended for use by licensed professionals and clinicians. This is a University of Minnesota-led initiative, and the Minnesota Department of Education is not involved,” reads a statement to media from the state agency, Yahoo! News reported.

The announcement by McMahon and the federal Education Department follows a wave of outrage from right-wing influencers, many of whom mocked an animated marketing video explaining that the dolls would have interchangeable genitalia.

“This is important because kids can learn that all gender identities and gender expressions are valid, no matter how your body looks,” a narrator in the video states.

There is no release date for the product, but interested customers can join a waiting list.