Gay Youth at Risk

Quillette is one of the few outlets willing to address the issue of how radical transgender activism endangers gay and lesbian youth, in no small measure by promoting the idea that gender nonstereotypical behavior (“effeminate” boys/”masculine” girls) indicates not homosexual orientation but transgender identity, and that these kids should be placed on puberty blockers as the first step to transitioning into the other gender (after which, presumably, they can live heterosexual lives). That sounds a lot like conversion therapy except with surgical finality. And yet LGBTQ movement groups have made transgender theory and activism their new central mission, and woe to anyone who questions the new transgender orthodoxy. Helen Joyce delves into these risks in great depth in her article “The New Patriarchy: How Trans Radicalism Hurts Women, Children—and Trans People Themselves.” Here’s another excerpt from Helen Joyce’s article:
Some gay people think that organizations set up to fight for gay rights made a mistake in throwing their weight behind trans activism. In an open letter in the Times in October, some prominent gays and lesbians accuse Stonewall, Britain’s biggest LGBT charity, of “uncritically adopting a form of transgender politics which undermines…the concept of homosexuality itself.” (It added “T” for transgender to its “LGB” (lesbian, gay and bisexual) mission in 2015.) More than 7,000 people have now signed a petition in support of the letter. Yet Stonewall’s CEO, Ruth Hunt, has denied any need for a rethink, saying that “trans equality is at the heart of our mission for acceptance without exception.”

Who Are the ‘Haters’?

From CampusReform:

Following a discussion on the Masterpiece Cakeshop ruling hosted by the George Washington University Federalist Society, the Student Bar Association and law school dean sent emails condemning the invited speaker from the Alliance Defending Freedom.

The event, “Religious Freedom or Discrimination: A Discussion of Masterpiece Cakeshop,” featured American Civil Liberties Union General Counsel Kenneth A. Klukowski and Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Jordan Lorence.

So, according to the lawyers to be and their leftwing administrators at GW, you shouldn’t even debate whether small business owners should be forced by the state to provide creative services for a same-sex wedding, because to defend religious freedom is hate.

But let’s recall the Justices Kennedy, Breyer and Kagan were part of the Court’s majority that found it was the Colorado Civil Right Commission that had shown animus toward baker Jack Phillips’ religious beliefs. So, who is the hater (hint: not those defending religious freedom).

Relatedly:

Hate Is Not a Virtue Because You’re a Progressive

I hope that sharing power in a divided government will make Democrats less likely to continue inciting mob hatred of anyone who dares commit the heresy of disagreeing publicly with progressive and identitarian dogmas. But I’m not hopeful.

Via Tucker Carlson:

Modern Times

The Washington Post looks at a gay male couple who decide not to tell their almost 3-year-old child whether she/he is a boy or a girl. Naya’s parents, Jeremy and Bryan, posted on Facebook: “If you interact with our kid, please make an effort to use Naya’s name, rather than a gendered pronoun.” In addition:

Jeremy and Bryan found themselves explaining [to Naya] that some people have penises and some have vaginas, and some have neither. Sometimes, having a vagina means feeling like a girl, but not always. They used their friends and relatives’ pictures to explain: Grandma is a woman; she likes to be called a she. Daddah is a man; he likes to be called a he. And Naya, they emphasized, could choose whatever Naya wanted.

Ultimately, readers are told that Naya decided to be a “she,” but we aren’t told whether Naya is biologically male or female.

Culture War in Rural America


From the article:

Gold’s message was, on the whole, a tough sell in Alexander County. For one thing, the very reason he gained an audience — his business success — was part of the reason residents viewed him as different, set apart.

He also doesn’t live in the county, instead residing just outside it, in a luxurious Adirondack-style house with lakefront views. He drives a Bentley to the factory and hobnobs with celebrities, decorating his office and home with framed photos of himself with Barack Obama and Joe Biden and Cher.

Moreover:

Anna Watson, the associate executive director of OUTright Youth, works with LGBT teens and young adults in five counties in the region…and she has worked with its P.R.I.D.E. Club.

“We can’t take the stance of bashing the churches,” she said. Since so many educators attend conservative churches, she believes being critical of religion will only hinder her work….When I asked Gold about her viewpoint, he said, “I understand why she has to do that, but it is kind of silly because we do want to change everybody’s beliefs.”