The Transgender Battle Line: Childhood

[suzifrommd]

The Transgender Battle Line: Childhood

By Debra W. Soh
Jan. 4, 2016

http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-transgender-battle-line-childhood-1451952794

The most current science has been trumped purely because it is at odds with the dominant political view concerning transgender development. We don't allow children to vote or get tattoos, yet in the name of progressive thinking we are allowing them to choose serious biomedical interventions with permanent and irreversible results.

The silencing of those who oppose this sends the message to parents that early transitioning is the only valid and ethical approach for a gender-dysphoric child. This message—pushing children to transition at increasingly younger ages so that they will fit neatly into one of two gender categories—is false and unscientific. It is more progressive to offer them the time and the space they need to figure out who they are and what is ultimately best for them.

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Warning: This article gives a rather anti-trans viewpoint, questioning whether children who want to transition should be allowed to do so.

[Serverlan]

Independent of any conclusions reached in the article, I do think that it's topic subject matter is complex.

However, I personally found the article a labour to read after the following paragraph, which considers psychology a discipline capable of providing findings worthy of being considered scientific fact.

In 2003 a sex researcher and psychology professor at Northwestern University named J. Michael Bailey published "The Man Who Would Be Queen," a book that countered the idea that male-to-female ->-bleeped-<- is innately tied to gender identity. For some, he said, the attraction is related to a sexual fantasy of being a woman. Dr. Bailey was quickly accused of transphobia and sustained several years of vicious public attacks. The episode left a lasting impression on sexology: Science that doesn't align with prevailing attitudes can be dangerous.

And if that were not bad enough, the article's author throws in a false dichotomy of "science versus prevailing attitudes," ignoring the fact that "prevailing attitudes" includes research that counter Bailey's findings.

As a 45-year-old who's only now putting the pieces together regarding my gender identity/expression (and harbouring huge regrets and grudges because of it), I don't pretend to know all of the answers to these difficult questions. But it's for this very reason that I know the "experts" referenced in this article certainly do not have a monopoly on the truth of the matter.

[Deborah]

Those guys make as much sense as saying that since we don't allow children to get tattoos we should not treat them for any medical condition.

And that's the problem.  The conservative side rejects the notion that this is a medical issue and holds to their idea that it's a matter of choice and morals.  Any dissent from their view is simply a liberal conspiracy.

Until both sides either accept or reject that transsexuality is a medical issue there will never be agreement on the issue.


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[Devlyn]

Is there anywhere we can read this without subscribing?

[stephaniec]

Is there anywhere we can read this without subscribing?

totally weird , I've read the article , but it seems to be blocked now. I read it early morning , so maybe it was open for a short time

[Devlyn]

Is there anywhere we can read this without subscribing?

totally weird , I've read the article , but it seems to be blocked now. I read it early morning , so maybe it was open for a short time

I'm taking that as a "No" 

[Devlyn]

Thanks! Now that I've read it, it's just an opinion piece and written with obvious bias. She's basically saying "This worked for me, everyone needs to do it."  We all know that's wrong, no sense fretting about it.

[suzifrommd]

For some reason, it seems like they've dropped it beneath a paywall.

[Devlyn]

I wouldn't pay a nickel for it.

[stephaniec]

Most gender dysphoric children outgrow their dysphoria, and do so by adolescence.

http://www.psmag.com/health-and-behavior/why-transgender-kids-should-wait-to-transition

PS Mag/ Debra W. Soh   Sep 1, 2015

this is where the article cane from

"My point of view is controversial, but it is one that concerned parents need to hear.

I was your typical, gender atypical little girl. My friends were all boys. My favorite pastimes included rough-and-tumble play and running around the house while waving my he-man sword high in the air. I insisted on using the toilet while standing up. I hated dolls and the color pink."

[Deborah]

The problem is that research does not say what she says.  From a statistical perspective, the study she uses, if it's the one I think, does not possess any degree of scientific validity. 

She also says,

"I was lucky in that my parents were never troubled by my gender non-conformity. They allowed me to dress how I pleased and to pursue the interests I enjoyed. "

And isn't that the only intervention anyone suggests for young children?

The problem most face, especially trans girls, is a rigid condemnation of gender nonconformity, exactly the polar opposite of her experience.

Then she says that nothing should be done until a child reaches cognitive maturity while failing to define that age. 

I give the article an F for missing the point and for excess ambiguity.



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[Asche]

The fact that the article's author speaks approvingly of J. Michael Bailey's work is a dead giveaway that she takes as her starting point that being transgender is a mental illness and is simply looking for "expert" opinions to support her belief.  And because the mental health profession has long been transphobic (the way it was until very recently homophobic), it's not hard to find "experts" to give a scientific appearance to her prejudice.

The Wall Street Journal has long been known for its right-wing political bias, not to mention that it is owned by Rupert Murdoch (the owner of Fox News), so that they would print (or commission) an article like this doesn't surprise me at all.