Is it legal for a 24 year old from Britain to have a relationship with 16 year old American?

The 24 year old from Britain is a transgender male to female who has connected up with a 16 year boy in America. The American boy is now making statement about questioning his gender. Up until he connected with the 24 year old from Britain the American boy had relationships with girls and had guy friends now he does nothing but talk with this individual from Britain. I know that legal age of sexual consent in Britain is 16 but in America this is not true. As a parent do I have any recourse.

I'm not really sure I'm clear on the scenario. Is the Brit in Britain or in America? Is the extent of the contact limited to online communication? What exactly is the "relationship"?

The most important age of consent to consider is informed by the state in which the American boy lives. There's a chart here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ages_of_consent_in_North_America#State_laws

However, that applies to sexual interactions. If there's an ocean between the two, I'm not sure how age of consent is relevant. Even if you're talking about solicitation of a minor (if the US boy is not of legal age of consent in his state), I'm not sure how you could convince a judge that the child is in real danger of being molested when there's no real chance of the two meeting. A 16yo would have to have notarized parental permission to leave the us alone (https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/449/kw/minors%20leaving%20the%20us/session/L3NpZC9UTDF6N0tpbA%3D%3D/p/0/c/0). The parent could also simply take the kid's passport. The 16yo would have to be able to afford the ticket. If the 24yo comes to the US and the kid is under the age of consent in his state of legal residence, that might be a different case.

What exactly is the crime being committed by the 24-year-old?

In terms of recourse... I suppose the parent could isolate the kid from the internet / phone / etc.

In my opinion, as a mother, I'm thinking if the kid is questioning his gender/sexuality, it's better for the kid to have someone to talk to about it. That's an extremely isolating experience, and having someone to talk to reduces the kid's risk of suicide. (Can't find the study to cite that... but it just makes sense anyway.) Was the kid was already questioning and looked for someone who's had similar experiences?

I can't imagine how the 24yo could "convince" the 16yo to question his gender identity. That's just not something you talk someone into questioning. Think about it. Peer pressure can influence a kid to dye their hair, listen to grunge, knock off at school, sneak around to get a piercing, smoke... that sort of thing. You can't push someone to question their gender identity if they aren't already.

Is it possible that the parent could be supportive of the child? Let the kid figure it out on his own without the parent bullying him into fitting into the social norm or what the parent wants the kid to be? Tell the child he has the parent's unconditional love no matter what? Can the kid just have love, support, and space? If the kid actually is some variation of lgbt, the world is going to be a difficult place. It would be better for the kid if the parent's arms remained a safe harbor in all of that.

The legality rests on what you mean by "connected up." There is no law to prevent them from communicating via the Internet but there are severe penalties if there is physical contact.

in most states in america,( 36 I believe) the age of consent is 16, so depends on where the 16 year old is, but I suggest you contact the 24 year old, via internet and see if you can determine what they expect from this relationship, and if the are a concerned person with shared concerns or if there is concern that they are going to cause your son harm, but if he is questioning his gender, please know he needs support, love and compassion, you may not agree with him, but know this is a difficult painful question for a teenager and having a positive role model who has dealt with this may help him