Thomas Beatty expecting again!

[joannatsf]

Barbara Walters just announced it on The View.

Looks like the original "link" is missing..

I wasn't aware there was a time limit to this, try you tube, I don't think there is a "bandwidth limit" for posting on a forum, I'm not sure! What are we taliking about? I've been away for awhile...

There was no original link.  I started this thread minutes after she said it on Thursday's show.  It was a plug for the BW Special that aired last night.

[soldierjane]

I think that he is definitely transgendered, which begs him at least a modicum of respect from his "community". He identifies as a he, he prefers male pronouns. We know what that means, right?

Now, I definitely wish Barbara Walters and Oprah knew better than to give him screen time. Why? Because their reports on trans children and trans people have done so much good to bring home the reality and the ordeal of what this is to the cisgendered majority, who has no clue but who is so instrumental in our quest for equal rights.

Thomas is inching towards the Bat boy side with this one. I don't mind him having children but I wish he would keep things private.

Did you actually watch the show?  A segment was devoted to the changing face of the family and it's expanding definition.  Barbara Walters isn't Mike Wallace.  It was very supportivr of LGBT people in it's content.

True, I never contested the fact that Barbara Walters is helping towards that goal, in fact I praised her. I think you misunderstand my implied meaning: that a lot of publicity for the the Beatie story does not help us much.

[Kate]

FWIW, I've had two cisgendered people come up to me now, asking, "Hey, did you hear that man is pregnant again?"

Both of them basically told me (paraphrasing), "I can sympathize with him wanting a child, especially since this was the only way for them, but if he thinks he's a man wouldn't he have just had his baby quietly and moved on with his transition, rather than getting pregnant again and again and going on TV about it?"

I don't care what he does, but it sure reinforces the stereotype that TSs are out to get attention by loudly breaking the gender roles and rules, rather than quietly assimilating into them.

~Kate~

[Mister]

The Beatty's daughter is normal and very cute!    Starting a family is one of the most personal choices a person can make.  I don't think politics was part of that decision for Mr. and Mrs. Beatty.  I'm grateful they made the effort to expand the definition of Mother and Father. 

She's four months old, which is quite early to label her a typical child.  besides, if anything has gone wrong do you think *that* part of the story would've gone public?

[Chamillion]

i have no problems w/ people doing whatever they want to do. if he's able to carry a child and be secure enough in his maleness then good for him. and i personally don't think the child's going to suffer that much, by the time shes in school he'll be back on hormones and they'll just be a normal family. but all the publicity is not a good thing for transpeople. sure, we all know that he's a man who's carrying a baby, but the majority of folks after hearing about this think "oh he's not a real man" or think he's a woman who just went on hormones and had surgery. thats what they start thinking for all transpeople. in a world where transsexuals were understood more this would be fine, but we aren't at that level of acceptance yet

[iFindMeHere]

Of course I can.  The problem comes from your eggs swimming around in testosterone for years- there are *no* studies on how this could impact your kid.  My issue with this dude has never been the fact that he is pregnant- other than concern for the health and safety of his kid - but rather that he has gone so very public with it.  Personal actions become political when you're part of a minority group and immeasurably so when you start putting yourself in the eyes of the media.

YES. Publicly we are such a small group that people will overuse heuristics. The second any of us do something it is applied to the witnesses' comprehension of transmen (possibly all trans!) as a category. We don't have enough acceptance/visibility yet for this to happen and not affect peoples' view of us.

[whatsername]

A conversation on this also happened in the news forum: https://www.susans.org/forums/index.php/topic,48746.0.html

[Jay]

I respect the fact he has the balls to be outted as a "man that's pregnant". But I agree with the rest in that it makes f2m's a joke in a lot of peoples eyes. He needs to keep his personal life private, and quit trying to get famous.

Exactly!

[Hazard "AJ"]

I dont agree full stop i didnt th 1st and the sec. Wow.. I tell u why i dont agree with him doing this. 1ST of he has felf like a man his howl life right? Ok. but men can have baby fact.. ok he wanted a child. i respect that i would love kids. But not for myself to have one.. I couldnt imagen me being pregnent. NOOO. cuz im a man in my mind and tat one thing then Men can not do is be pregnent. I would keep my eggs but i wouldnt have a baby myself. It dont make sence to me that he would do it if he felt like a man all his life.. The 1st time was wired enough but the sec. I dunno maybe its me. But men cant have babys thats it...

[Ell]

Thomas Beattie is totally blurring the lines as to just what it means to be Trans, or male, or female.

not sure why he shouldn't be allowed to do that.

however, for him to now use his public figure stature to try and get Trans rules applied to his legal status, where he clearly hasn't followed established Trans rules, adds even more confusion and possible hostility and backlash toward all Trans.

for better or worse, established Trans rules specify a binary. while this may not be the best fit for all Trans people, it is something of a requirement that the larger society insists on, for the time being anyway.

Mr. Beatty clearly stepped outside the Trans binary, and now wants to step back in, and raise a fuss about not getting binary status. jeez.

-ell