Transgenderism and Ignorance

 Tonight I was directed to an article on the Fox Boston website about a transgendered young boy and how his parents (who cares if they are gay or straight) are trying to support him. A couple are giving their 11 year old child Tommy hormone blockers that delay the onset of puberty in order to give him more time to decide if he wants to change his gender. For the details go to:

http://www.myfoxboston.com/dpp/news/national/hormone-treatment-for-pre-t...

The piece was reasonably balanced even if one "expert" quoted seemed sadly misinformed. The expert is a professor of psychiatry from John Hopkins University. The article doesn't say comment on his field of expertise. I mean if he isn't an expert in transgenderism it would be about the same as asking a dermatologist to give an opinion on your knee replacement, wouldn't it. Anyway, I digress...

Some of the comments posted below the article by readers were almost hateful. I saw a number of references to nature being perfect in the responses posted there. If the child was born male in appearance than he must be male, right? If we extend the argument for a moment, then children born with birth defects should be permitted to suffer and die, because nature must know what its doing, right? Wrong.

Nature is not perfect. Children are born with birth defects and I think it is cruel to suggest that just because some defects are harder to see and understand than others that they are any less worthy of compassion and treatment. The notion that a young child or his parents would come up with a disease because he or they can't "cope" with the hardness of life is ridiculous.

The "sex" of a person's brain may not match their outward appearance. All it takes is the wrong combination of hormones/maternal body chemicals to come into play at the wrong time in utereo and this is what can go wrong. Just for one minute, try to imagine what it must be like to identify as a man but be living in a woman's body, or vice versa. Now imagine trying to come to grips with this as a child before you even have the language to explain what you are feeling.

It never ceases to amaze me how heartless and cruel people are willing to be when they decide someone is a freak of nature. I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Children with birth defects once were shunted away to institutions or found a home in freak sideshows and society felt this was okay. Hell, they even paid to watch.

I guess cruelty is one birth defect we haven't conquered yet.

I signed in and left my own comment in support of two parents who are trying to be supportive of their child around a very complex issue. I encourage you to do the same.