Transgenders: What about the children?
Wow! Here we are, its nearing the end of 2019. We have all been through so much! Identity politics has almost ruined society as we know it. Can we all just take a breather from the nonsense? How did social norms, politics and Hollywood come to an all out war against everyone else? There is nothing but confusion and chaos. My brain can't take it all. Every topic however, has to be taken on one at a time or your head would spin right off! Today's blog is going to focus on the "T" in the LGBTQ acronym. This topic in and of itself could be broken into sub categories so please bare with me if I dont cover all aspects of transgenderism but I will try my best to cover what I can, without turning a blog into a novel.
Lets start with the most recent news and work our way back to the beginning. In the last few weeks, children changing their minds about their transgender identity has been a hot topic of discussion on social media and independent conservative news sources. Candace Owens covers this on her most recent show to date from the writing of this blog; but, she talks to an adult who regrets their transition. So, its not just with children that we are seeing a reversal in this mindset. But this isn't new information. I watched a documentary last year, in 2018, that talked to a handful of transgenders, male and female who all regretted how far they took their body dysphoria.
One would think, a child who feels they aren't the gender they were born as, should be treated in a more delicate manner than an adult who finally opens up about their disorder. Especially, when we know, adults have also changed their minds years after fully transitioning. One would think but its not happening. Children are being paraded in public; parades, bars, social media and even national news all have put transgender children on display. None of which could be possible without the consent of at least one parent. A woman at the LGBT townhall, hosted by CNN, brought her trans son with her for the world to see and celebrate. But its not just trans kids being explioted. I am sure many of you have heard of Desmond, the 11 year old drag queen who has performed on daytime talk shows, after a video of his went viral. Desmond was at a gay night club with his parents, where he performed on stage and even had patrons throwing him tips. The sight was outrage on the right and pure joy and celebration on the left. I believe it was reported that after that video, coupled with his daytime tv debut, public outrage caused a formal investigation of the parents by Child Protective Services.
Turns out, letting your child be put on display, even in a night club is perfectly fine. In this new age of being "woke" and not wanting to be labeled "intolerant" the parental guidelines have been practically erased. In the spirit of this new attitude, we must not discriminate, nor make waves when a parent is raising a child with identifiable traits that can be exploited politically and by the left as a whole. I am sure some of you reading wonder why bring a child drag star into a conversation on transgender. Well, that is because the left has lumped drag queens and trans people in the LGBT community. Now the acronym is LGBTQ+ Which is still not the whole of the community. From what I have read some people say there are almost 23 letters to properly include everyone. That is a whole other blog.
Because all of these people have been lumped together, they all get the same treatment. If Desmond was a straight, white girl and identified as a dancer/stripper, I doubt society would applaud and encourage that little girl to dance on stage in front of grown men for money. However, if its someone in the LGBTQ+ community, to say something makes you some word ending in phobic. Transphobic, homophobic, and whatever new terms the left creates.
It also creates an environment that doesn't question. Even though he might grow out of his drag persona, the decisions made can never be erased. But the second you hear of a trans child, or a child says they think they are in the wrong body, that's it. You believe it, you go with it, without question. If a child starts hormone treatments, that decision, although reversible, living out loud and proud at 8 yrs old, then having it recorded on internet history forever, remains. It's one thing for choices made as an adult to stay with you forever and even having people Judge on those choices, its another, when it's a child. As parents we want to protect our children. Allowing sex changes and drag performing to be something we dont protect them from, or even question, almost seems like child abuse.
Parents have lost their children in court for not allowing a child to identify as trans and start making medical choices to eventually fully transition. I am all for self expression and living ones best life how they see fit. However, a parent can support and guide their children to help them discover themselves in a way that isnt permanent or leaves them a socially awkward in the meantime.
I wonder what would happen if every parent just went along with what their childs desires are. Some kids want to be a dragon. Some kids want to be a unicorn. Children have imaginations, curiosities and can be heavily influenced. Who on earth would automatically say their child is trans because they happen to like or be drawn to things of the opposite sex? What parent in their right mind would take that for face value and not dig deeper to find the cause?
Perfect example, I watched a lecture on transgender children from a psychiatrist. He told a very interesting story about a boy who wanted to be a girl. He was around 6years old. In order to get a full picture of the boys life, he asked him questions about his family. Turns out, the parents had recently added to their family. The little boy, had a younger sister that was getting a lot of attention. It was concluded that the boy didn't want to actually be a girl. He just wanted the same attention his baby sister was getting.
Just knowing that if we take our time, talk it out and go through a process with a professional; there is a way to get to the root of the issue. I am not suggesting all trans people have to do is go to therapy and the answers will suddenly appear. Everyone is different but the foundation of where we start should be the same.
Why would we not want to be sure, why would we not want to be the adults and help direct a child in a safe and healthy way? Can you imagine if the child in the story I referenced didn't have someone to figure he just wanted more attention? What if the parents fed into the hype that the younger we let children transition, the happier and healthier they will be. Imagine if those parents didn't agree and the parent wanting their child to transition held all the power because they are more "woke". Imagine if someone lost custody of their child because they are deemed intolerant and a health risk to their own child. Imagine a marriage falling apart all because society has bullied parents into this idea that the second a child says they dont feel like their biological gender , they must transition. Imagine that same child at 16, who we should have known at six was just handling a new sibling differently, now realizing, he didn't really want to be a girl at all. Imagine finding out at 20 that the way he expressed needing attention was misunderstood.
Now, more and more children are coming into their own, reaching puberty and understanding their body and understanding, they made a mistake. Professionals have said the road to full transition is long, hard and expensive. Despite all the work to transition, transition doesn't cure the mind of body dysphoria. In many cases, not all , the transition left the person feeling unsatisfied. This is why the suicide rate is so high in the trans community. It certainly isnt the only reason but it is a reason. Why add all of that pressure to a young mind to be in the "woke" crowd? Are there extra parental points these parents want for having a child that is trans? I dont understand the urgency in taking hormones or stopping puberty in a child who might wake up one day and feel completely different about things. Children do that, they change their minds, a lot!
If you know the statistics, trans people made up 0.6% of the population in 2016. But if you watch liberals, any left leaning media, be it the news or a movie made by Hollywood, you would think it was more like 85% of the population is trans. All of which are discriminated against, of course. Truth be told, trans people do have rights. Not everyone believes or understands transgender, but we all have rights.
Now I am not saying that group doesn't deserve representation but let's remember, it is a small group. To see trans people displayed in all walks of life on tv or the big screen, when that isnt a true representation of the numbers is kind of a big deal. The reason many people aren't comfortable or just aren't educated about trans people, is because not everyone knows or is exposed to a trans person. Sadly, those people are lumped into the intolerant transphobe category for simply not knowing more about the community, asking questions or expressing an opinion not in line with trans people.
Look what happened with our President and the trans bathroom policies. All Trump did was remove big government from state and county issues. He put it back in the hands of the people to vote locally on the issue. Anyone who agrees to the policy change , which was a lot of people, were all labeled transphobic.
I was once very liberal and believed trans people should use the bathroom according to their passibility of the sex they claim. I still believe that. I also believe each city, county, state should have a say on the matter. This means, the people can vote on it. This means, business owners can opt to have a third bathroom option or make all bathrooms gender neutral, if they want to. This means the schools can all have policy based on what the student body, faculty and parents agree to, not the government forcing said changes without the consent of the people it will directly affect. That is fair and that doesn't make me or anyone else who believes this, transphobic. If a transwoman is walking around with a hairy chest and a beard, yes, I have seen transwomen look this way, then no sir, go to the mens bathroom until you can pass as the female gender. If people dont see you as a transwoman or even at a glance as a woman , work harder to get it right. Work harder to earn that bathroom pass without judgement , anger and for some fear.
Yes, many conservatives are fearful. Fear of the unknown and the known. Men, especially, have used transgender rights to get into women's bathrooms to assault and harass women and children.
In the U.K I believe, a man in prison for raping women was transferred to a womans facility after claiming to be a transwoman. Once entering the womans prison, he then had plenty of women to rape, and he did! So, there is a legitimate fear over "trans rights" trumping the rights of other citizens, especially women and children. Lets be fair to everyone and be real about this and admit, just like anything else, these policies and laws can be taken advantage of.
Another big change since the trans discussion is transwomen/men in sports. I think I read somewhere Democrats want to force schools to allow trans students to play in sports as their preferred gender and not their biological gender. This controversial topic is being addressed in a lot of adult sports like power lifting. These leagues are not allowing trans people to play in the sport under their preferred gender.
There is so much to figure out and I dont think treating children as guinea pigs is the right answer. The same problems, concerns and beliefs are very present in the land of adults. We are barely stretching the surface and figuring it out medically and socially. Why would we ever put that upon our children? Let them be kids and enjoy the simple life, without identity politics.
Let these kids be expressive but explain to them that sometimes things we feel so passionate and sure of as kids, can easily change. The time to have a more serious look into the issue is after puberty. This puberty blocker crap is not reversible and can cause serious harm to a child. The child who was so sure but then has a change of mind and essentially stuck in a choice made before the ripe old age of ten is who I worry for!
Studies have shown the suicide rate doesn't go down once someone has fully transitioned. The number is roughly the same. If our fear is suicide, then we are still barking up the wrong tree for solutions.
There are many issues regarding the trans community. However, I think it's important to leave our kids out of this. More and more kids are coming out as trans and a big reason is the push from the left. There are things parents can say or do in front of their kids to draw them in, because they are curious and eager to please.
When we question children about a crime or assault, there is a way to do so without leading the child or affecting how they answer. This technique should be used when talking about transgender. We need to turn over rock and cover all our bases before letting a child make grown decisions. Living out and proud as a trans should not be an option before 14. Even then, making permanent choices about cutting off or adding body parts shouldn't start until 18.
There is so much more to go into and consider. This blog barely scratches the surface. However, I hope it at least starts a much needed conversation. Too many adults and kids are now changing their minds for is to ignore. Its not intolerance, it's the right thing to do.