Several gun control groups are claiming that giving minors access to “gender-affirming care” will prevent or reduce firearm violence.

In an amicus brief filed by gun control organizations Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, Team Enough, and March For Our Lives Action, the groups claim that laws banning gender transition surgeries are “correlated with a climate of hostility that puts transgender individuals directly at risk, whether or not they have access to or choose to undergo gender-affirming medical care.”

“In the face of the ongoing gun violence crisis gripping our nation, ensuring access to gender-affirming care for transgender youth is not merely a matter of medical necessity—it is a crucial component in our fight against the epidemic of gun violence that disproportionately threatens this vulnerable population,” the brief reads. According to the gun control groups, “[p]reserving access to this necessary medical treatment reduces the risk that those with access to firearms will use them for self-harm.”

The amicus brief was filed in United States v. Skrmetti, a case surrounding a Tennessee law prohibiting sex change surgeries for minors.

The gun control groups claim that SB1, the legislation prohibiting transgender surgeries for minors, will have a “catastrophic effect on the safety of transgender youth.”

“By denying access to gender-affirming medical care, SB1 not only inhibits the ability of transgender youth to present as their authentic selves safely in society, but it also perpetuates the dangerous and baseless perception that transgender individuals who seek medical transition pose a threat to society,” the amicus brief reads.

Kris Brown, President of Brady, said in a statement that developing conditions that “foster dignity, freedom, and mental well-being for young people can reduce the risk of gun violence just as background checks, extreme risk laws, and other gun safety measures do.”

“We are committed to addressing gun violence with a public health approach – allowing everyone to get the care they need and deserve. SCOTUS must strike down this ban and put the rights, health, and lives of transgender youth first,” Brown added.