Katie Herzog wrote an article for The Stranger titled The Detransitioners: They Were Transgender, Until They Weren’t, about “an emerging population of people who have transitioned to a different gender and then later transitioned back.” Then all hell broke lose.
It seems like much of the ferocity behind the attacks on Herzog’s article asserts that detransitioning is akin to becoming ex-gay. But this assumes transitioning as transgender is a close parallel to coming out as gay or lesbian. The studies Herzog cites and her interviews with detransitioners indicate that this isn’t the case.
I’ll leave aside the issue of “effeminate” gay or “masculine” lesbian pre- and post-adolescents who now increasingly are pressured to view themselves as transgender. Suffice to say that solid research has shown that many who experience gender dysphoria when young will grow up gay, lesbian or bisexual and feel comfortable as the gender they were assigned at birth.
Ironically, when an effeminate gay man (or boy) transitions as a woman (or girl), “she” typically takes on a heterosexual identity. By detransitioning, “he” reclaims a gay identity, thereby enraging trans activists, our LGBT+ “allies.”
On a related note, Taylor Fogarty writes that some trans activists are now disputing the definition of being gay itself:
Shannon Keating of Buzzfeed suggests we eliminate the word lesbian altogether, arguing: “Against the increasingly colorful backdrop of gender diversity, a binary label like ‘gay’ or ‘lesbian’ starts to feel somewhat stale and stodgy. When there are so many genders out there, is it closed-minded — or worse, harmful and exclusionary — if you identify with a label that implies you’re only attracted to one?” …
Riley J. Dennis…tells lesbians their “genital preferences are discriminatory,” since they only “prefer” vaginas, and “some women have penises.”
And finally:
9 Comments for “LGB and T: ‘Detransitioning’ Isn’t the same as becoming ex-gay”
posted by Jorge on
The left eats its own again. I miss the days when it was just gays vs. blacks.
posted by Lori Heine on
I intend to spend zero time worrying about crazy crap like this. I expect 99.9% of other gay, lesbian and bisexual people–regardless of political persuasion–will do likewise.
The only people who really get worked-up about this sort of nonsense are those who are paid to tell us what to think. Screw them.
posted by Tom Scharbach on
It seems like much of the ferocity behind the criticism of Herzog’s article asserts that detransitioning is akin to becoming ex-gay.
What’s to say about ignorant nonsense coming from people who don’t know what they are talking about? It happens, its human.
This post reminds me of the intense (and sometimes heated) debates that take place in the Linux community from time to time over which of two obscure and virtually unused distros is technically better. The uproar might affect less than a thousand folks using one or the other distro, and to those thousand folks the issue is important. To the other half-billion or so computer users, not so much.
posted by Jerrelt on
My biggest problem with posts such as this one is how an extremely miniscule number of people who take far out positions always seem to translate into the old bugaboo “the left” in an attempt to tar and slander people who have no such beliefs and in my case had never heard of such arguments and positions. It seems to Stephen that the most far out personal beliefs for him translates automatically to liberals and leftists.
posted by Doug on
You have just captured the primary problem with IGF. According to Stephen if one progressive says or believes something stupid, all progressives are held to account. Needless to say the reverse is never true.
posted by Tom Scharbach on
You have just captured the primary problem with IGF. According to Stephen if one progressive says or believes something stupid, all progressives are held to account. Needless to say the reverse is never true.
Speaking of which …
posted by Tj 3rd on
1. Their are people who seriously believe that the earth is flat. Under Stephen’s logic, an extraterrestrial would be right in pointing out the flat earth society as proof that homo-sapiens cannot be trusted.
2. Yes, liking football, doesn’t mean that someone is transgender or cisgender. If doctors are making diagnosis based on silly stereotypes, then allow me to introduce them to the flat earth society.
posted by TJ 3rd on
Meanwhile…..we got flat earth society members and homocons who cant do math.
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