Who is Sage Blair, teen invited by Trump to SOTU

Virginia teenager Sage Blair has come into the national spotlight after being invited by Donald Trump as a special guest to the 2026 State of the Union (SOTU) address. Her appearance has drawn attention because of an ongoing legal dispute involving her family and school officials.

Blair attended the high-profile event with her mother, Michelle Blair, as debates continue in the United States over parental rights and school policies related to students.

Why she is in the news

Sage Blair is involved in a legal case that claims school staff made important decisions about her without informing her parent. According to court filings from 2023, Blair — who was 14 at the time — told a school counsellor she wanted to be addressed by a male name and pronouns at school.

The family alleges the counsellor agreed to the request but did not notify her mother. Their legal team has argued that this amounted to deception and violated parental rights.

Following these events, the family claims Blair later ran away and suffered serious harm, including alleged abduction and trafficking across state lines.

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Legal fight and reactions

The school counsellor’s legal team has denied wrongdoing. They maintain there was no constitutional duty to inform parents about a student’s gender identity.

Blair’s case has gained support from some conservative advocacy groups. Vernadette Broyles of the Child & Parental Rights Campaign publicly praised Blair and her mother, calling them courageous.

The invitation to the State of the Union has further amplified the case, placing Sage Blair at the centre of a broader national debate over student privacy, parental rights and school responsibilities.