While I unequivocally support the basic human rights of transgender individuals, I believe there are certain aspects of the current discourse and approaches that should be critically examined:
1. Medical Transition for Minors:
While I understand the desire to support transgender youth, I caution against allowing medical transitioning before the age of 19. The brain is still developing during adolescence, and it is crucial to allow individuals ample time to explore their gender identity and make informed decisions about their bodies.
2. Potential Drawbacks of Transitioning:
It is important to acknowledge that medical transitioning can have both benefits and potential risks. While it can significantly improve the well-being of many transgender individuals, it can also involve irreversible changes and potential health complications. It is essential to ensure that individuals have access to comprehensive information and support before making any decisions.
3. Prioritizing Causes:
Transgender rights and support represent a significant cause, and it is essential to advocate for inclusivity and equality. At the same time, we must recognize the multitude of pressing societal challenges that also demand immediate attention and resources. These include, but are not limited to, addressing poverty, combating climate change, and ensuring access to healthcare for underserved communities.
LOL, downvoted and not a single comment on here. Typical lemmy. I suppose this is a conversation we should not be having? Verboten? What a wonderful way to win hearts and minds.
As to #1, yeah, I get you. When I was young, I used to always say I must have been a woman in a past life. Or I might say I felt like I should have been born a woman. But after aging some, I realized I’m simply comfortable with women and with my feminine side. Both feelings were unusual among boys in my peer group. LOL, turns out, I’m as CIS as they come.
#2 would concern me, but it seems regret over transitioning is a tiny percentage. OTOH, everything I’ve read on the subject uses subjects who agreed to the survey and self-reported. I’m expressing that terribly. In other words, the stats don’t seem well done.
#3 You’re talking about political capital, a thing I find almost no one understands. People think their hot-button issue is obvious and should be handled in an obvious manner. “It’s a factual no-brainer and it should be done!”
Everyone wants their pet issue to be #1 in “spending”. And saying, “We can do more than one thing at a time.”, is naive. It’s impossible to disagree with on it’s face, yet entirely unhelpful in the realm of politics. Say a politician is stumping for climate issues, but stumping for trans rights will turn off too many voters to accomplish that goal. What would we have them do? Welcome to why politics is such a pain in the ass.
Are there young children having transition surgery? My understanding is that transitioning requires years of therapy. That young minors are typically only given puberty blockers, followed by HRT when appropriate. There are standards set by medical organizations.
My understanding is that a lot of the regrets stem from society not accepting them.
What political capital is needed to not be an asshole. Do you need a lot of capital to not target already at-risk youth?
You are right, it’s a conversation we should not be having, because it has been discussed at nauseam and it’s brought up again just to waste our time. Transgenders are humans and have rights. Deal with it.