A family I know had a brick through their window because one of their kids was transgender. They ended up having to move house. There are hypothetical bricks being 'chucked', & then there are the real & metaphorical ones that are thrown at trans people simply for existing.
I hesitated before posting, whether or not this reveals personal data, then realised this could easily apply to several families I know. Trans hate crimes recorded by police rose 81% last year. @stonewalluk estimated 2 in 5 trans people had experienced hate crime last year alone.
You rarely hear of these crimes. Speaking to media can put trans people at greater risk of harm. Sometimes brave kids speak out in the hope the abuse will stop. Like this young girl repeatedly attacked. The 3rd time at school she had her head stamped on. grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/news/grimsby-n…
Or this girl, shot in school with a BB Gun. Incidents of transphobic bullying including assault are frighteningly common. Schools often unsupportive, ignoring, or enabling abuse. @stonewalluk (2017) found 10% Trans kids received death threats @Keir_Starmerbbc.co.uk/news/uk-englan…
The Stonewall Schools report (2017) surveyed Secondary children & young people aged 11-19. The first person accounts of abuse are heartbreaking stonewall.org.uk/sites/default/…
Many of the incidents I hear involve children in Primary education.
CW/ Trigger warning. Transphobia, Self-Harm, Suicide ideation, Bullying, Rape. - Find below quotes from young people taken from the 2017 Stonewall report.
For the first few months after I came out, entire classes would chant ‘chick with a dick’ at me, in PE people would pull down my shorts and pants, groups petitioned to ban me from using the toilets & changing rooms and joining PE lessons.
Max, 17, sixth form college (South East)
I got pushed in corridors, kicked and told that I was a ‘nervous wreck’ when I would cry about the bullying. If I am or am not transgender, I am willing to fight against the ignorance I’ve experienced.
Charlie, 17, sixth form college (Wales)
A large group of boys ganged up on me, threatened to rape me and tried to rape me. They said it was OK and not rape because I am a freak and not real, and because I’m asking for it by being a ‘freaky tranny’.
Ash, 18, sixth form college (East Midlands)
I was so afraid of going to the toilets, that for about four years of secondary school I never used the school toilets.
Joey, 16, sixth form college (East of England)
Because the teachers made fun of trans people I was too scared to tell anyone about it.
Jesse, 17, FE college (Scotland)
I hear a lot more ignorance and hatred surrounding trans people, and so have made the decision not to come out any time soon. I don’t feel safe to do so.
Toby, 16, sixth form college (East Midlands)
I’ve constantly been the victim of online abuse and it’s always anonymous. It made me feel violated and awful, it created an overwhelming sense of guilt towards being
trans, and increased the hatred I had for myself.
Christopher, 17, sixth form college (Yorkshire and the Humber)
I got online messages calling me a ‘tr*nny f*gg*t’ and telling me to ‘kys’ (kill yourself).
Corey, 14, private secondary school (Scotland)
The results of the Stonewall schools survey of 11-19 year old's are shocking.
84% of Trans young people in school self-harm.
45% have attempted to take their own life.
I personally know of at least 10 families who've taken the difficult decision to remove children from school for their own safety. Some of these kids are primary age.
Things have been getting worse of late not better. COVID for some trans kids has meant a respite from abuse.
Sickeningly the majority of Trans children & young people are not supported at home. The current lock-down has placed more vulnerable kids within hurtful & sometimes dangerous family environments where they are unable to escape a constant barrage of shame, control & abuse.
The recent @LGBTfdn report found that LGBT+ people are disproportionately impacted by Coronavirus. Trans youth are less able to access healthcare, more likely to be homeless & more likely to be facing domestic abuse. lgbt.foundation/coronavirus/im…
The question whether the Cass review team carried out engagement with Trans communities is immaterial. The engagement was not genuine, views shared in good faith by children & young people, families & support services were absent from synthesis & final recommendations. #CassFlaws
The methodology of the Cass Review qualitiative research stated they would conduct 40 interviews, 20 with 12-18s and 20 with adults up to age 30. They managed only 14 and 12 respectively. 26 interviews which were jumped on by gender critcal parents & anti Trans 'ex trans' groups
I'll repeat, in terms of the research output, the Cass York team conducted only 14 interviews with Trans children. 14 not even meeting the miniscule target set out in their research methodology.
I'm working my way through the Cass Sytemic review on Clinical guidelines for children & adolescents experiencing gender dysphoria or incongruence: it is very difficult to lack of access to the standards they review. There are also methodological issues 1/adc.bmj.com/content/early/…
I'm going to talk about the two standards the Cass research team rated highest & which the Cass Final report is most closely matched to in terms of recommendations - namely The Swedish and Finland protocols 2/
It's important to note neither of these guidelines is published in English. Originally Cass research team had stated they would exclude non English language guidelines, this is repeated in the overarching criteria of the Cass Report (screenshot 1). However they made exceptions 3/
I've been looking at a paper cited in Cass (recreating a graph introducing new spelling errors). I have thoughts. It is an undergraduate author. No full is data provided - only 3 sets of extracts, which have 9 or 10 respondents 1 of which repeats in error. tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.10…
The methodology section doesn't state the survey was originally a questionnaire to understand current needs of detransitioners and to produce an information booklet about detransition. I wonder if ethics approval was given for this - any German Trans academics can help check?
The survey was shared on Twitter, Reddit (R/Detrans), Facebook & Instagram. I've looked at these posts. There was minimal interaction which makes me suspicious of the claimed 237 respondents - much higher than more publicised surveys ie Littman (2021) 101 responents in 4.5 months
I've been reading of the Finland youth gender centre in Tampere which the Cass review lauds. It was recently revealed the head of the centre is on the Cass advisory group. CW In following tweets I relate extremely disturbing accounts from parents & youth of what they endured 1/
This is by 'Spinner' for Kehraaja (Nightjar in Finnish) 19.3.2021 "Describe to me how you masturbate?" - the position of trans youth in the treatment system is bleak" 2/kehraaja.com/kuvaile-minull…
Content Warning in the article is as follows "we recommend using discretion when reading, as the text may shock readers. The text discusses, among other things, medical power and its use, possible violations of a child's sexual integrity, and measures aimed at trans youth." 3/
There is a bad science story in Today's Daily Mail. Where an anti Trans academic has published a new study - the headline claiming Puberty Blockers lowers IQ in Trans youth. It took me 5 mins to find the study.
Here's some quick fact checking on this research: 1/
1) The study 'The Impact of Suppressing Puberty on Neuropsychological Function' Baxindale S. is pre-print & has not been peer reviewed. It is not clear where or when it will be published. A quick review sees some common factors in anti Trans studies such as 'cherry picking' 2/
2) The 'Study' presents no new data, it is a literature review, front ended with common anti Trans talking points. Many of these look familiar to simliar outputs from the author including on anti Trans lobby group Transgender Trend's website. 3/
BREAKING: WPATH release statement on NHS Trans health interim service specification for children & young people "An unconscionable degree of state intusion into personal & family medical decision making" with "serious flaws...likely to cause enormous harm" #TransHealthCrisis
WPATH, ASIAPATH, EPATH, PATHA, and USPATH Response to NHS England Statement regarding the Interim Service Specification for the Specialist Service for Children and Young People with Gender Dysphoria (Phase 1 Providers) by NHS England* listloop.com/wpath/mail.cgi…
This is one of the best crafted, and referenced critiques I have ever read. To be issued by the deeply conservative WPATH & by all major international Trans health organisations, demonstrates just how far the NHS has strayed into moral panic over evidenced based Trans healthcare.