Thank you for the link. I had seen some of Ethan’s articles before, though I did not follow him. I decided to change that after reading his article on what is a woman. I believe during the discussions we have had, I have not said anything inconsistent with the analysis he provides. All of the statistics he cites and the specific conditions described match information from other journals I have read.
Three things popped out at me. First, I was surprised that surgeons were still doing surgery on intersex people as infants up until the turn of the current century. I thought they had abandoned the practice for the most part much earlier. Second, he discusses women who are genetically X-Y and appear to be such with normal female genitalia because of androgen insensitivity. They are often (but not always) infertile. As I shared with you, I have a female AR gene though developed as a male with no problems. Obviously, my condition is somewhat milder than the group he describes.
Finally, and most importantly, for the current debate regarding gender affirming care for children, he notes that children at the age of 2 can differentiate males from females. By 3 they identify as either boys or girls. By age 4 they have a fixed gender identity. Part of the argument of the ignorant is that the brains of children do not fully mature until the age of 25 in terms of impulse control and cognitive maturity. Therefore they could not possibly know who they are at a younger age. The description of mental maturity may be true, but as I noted before, even very young children know who they are at a very early age, and this does not change. It is not a matter of socialization. This is an important distinction which the public needs to understand. Young children are very capable of knowing and expressing who they are and their sense of identity needs to be respected and supported. They need appropriate care, which does not involve any kind of medical intervention until they approach the age of puberty. This was a concern you expressed in an earlier communication. It is understandable that you might be uncomfortable with the idea, but hopefully you now know more, and can accept the fact that gender identity is internally fixed at a very young age. No one is converting them or grooming them or sexualizing them. It cannot be done. You cannot convert a cis person into a trans person and you cannot talk a trans person out of being trans. It is a fixed characteristic of each of us, no matter how we identify.
Many individuals know at a young age exactly who they are. My friend Jen, who is a transgender woman, is one of those who knew when she was a young child. Others, like myself, came to the awareness more slowly over a period of time, primarily due to social pressure and parental expectations. We were good at burying our true identity. I discuss my journey in the article called Hard Boiled Eggs Are Tough To Crack. If you would like a more detailed story about someone who knew when they were very young, I would highly recommend Becoming Nicole by Amy Ellis Nutt. It is well written and paints a clear picture of a young transgender girl with an identical male twin who could not be dissuaded from it.
I have thoroughly enjoyed our conversations. I would like to thank you for bringing Ethan’s article to my attention. It is thoughtful and well reasoned. The fact that you identified it suggests that you are truly trying to filter out the hysteria in the current public debate. The bottom line is what I suggested previously. Politicians should not be involved in making laws regarding trans people. Their efforts are ill informed, based upon emotion and outright lies, pander to a lowest common denominator of fear and bigotry, and are ultimately harmful to the very group they claim to be trying to protect. As Ethan noted, the decision should be between the child, their parents, and the medical professionals treating them.
