Regarding targeting of kids or performing harmful or unnecessary surgeries or other treatments:
Transgender Children 1. Are they given hormones and surgery?
If a child comes out as transgender pre puberty, they are allowed to choose their clothing, toys, hair style, name, and pronouns, all of which is completely 100% reversible.
At tanner stage 2 puberty, blockers are given to buy the child more time to consider, discuss with parents and medical/mental health professionals, and decide whether to move forward with transition or not. They are 100% reversible with no negative effects to reproductive ability when stopped by age 16.
At the age of 16, either blockers are stopped, and natural puberty is allowed to progress normally or blockers are continued, and cross sex HRT is started to allow the child to progress into puberty of the preferred sex, again, at a normal time for puberty.
Top surgery for both trans boys and girls is available at around the age of 16, coincidentally the same age when cisgender girls are allowed to have elective breast augmentation. Bottom surgery is generally held off until the age of 18. This goes for all bottom surgeries, including those that result in sterilization.
This is the schedule for allowed transition processes, not required. A lot of trans people choose not to go through some (or even all) of the steps. The entire process is incredibly patient-centered, and includes years of gender therapy to ensure that before any medical steps are taken, children that are confused or unsure are weeded out of the process.
Preventing the permanent changes that natural puberty brings to transgender children saves lives. You can't un-grow breasts in a trans boy, and you can't un-grow facial hair or un-deepen the voice of a trans girl. Preventing natural puberty ensures that the child will be better able to pass and integrate into society later and prevents the need for expensive and invasive surgeries to correct the wrong puberty at a later point.
More facts:
A large study by Harvard Key of transgender children from the Netherlands found that only 1.9% of transgender children change their mind by adolescence.
Transgender children who are allowed to transition develop less mental illnesses like depression, are less likely to attempt suicide, are less likely to become homeless in adulthood, and are less likely to experience intense gender dysphoria.
Sources:
Leng, Kirsten. “Magnus Hirschfeld’s Meanings: Analysing Biography and the Politics of Representation.” German History, vol. 35, no. 1, Mar. 2017, pp. 96–116. 
Taylor, Michael Thomas, et al. Not Straight From Germany : Sexual Publics and Sexual Citizenship Since Magnus Hirschfeld. University of Michigan Press, 2017. 
Bullough, Vern L. “Magnus Hirschfeld, an Often Overlooked Pioneer.” Sexuality & Culture, vol. 7, no. 1, Winter 2003, p. 62. 
LEWIS, BRIAN. “Magnus Hirschfeld and the Quest for Sexual Freedom: A History of the First International Sexual Freedom Movement.” Journal of the History of Sexuality, vol. 22, no. 2, May 2013, pp. 351–353.
DRUCKER, PETER. “Science and Sex: Hirschfeld’s Legacy.” New Politics, vol. 15, no. 2, Winter 2015, p. 124.
Caplan, Jane. “The Administration of Gender Identity in Nazi Germany.” History Workshop Journal, vol. 72, no. 1, Oct. 2011, pp. 171–180.



Fascists shut down an investigation using bomb threats:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/bomb-threats-sent-demanding-dropping-of-school-title-ix-investigation/ar-AAXYwlf
https://v.redd.it/xgs6maocqw391

Forced genital inspection legislation from "child protectors" :
https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/columnist/nancy-armour/2022/06/04/ohio-bill-targets-transgender-athletes-with-genital-check/7504997001/?gnt-cfr=1



Anti-trans is fascism sources:

Leng, Kirsten. “Magnus Hirschfeld’s Meanings: Analysing Biography and the Politics of Representation.” German History, vol. 35, no. 1, Mar. 2017, pp. 96–116. 

Taylor, Michael Thomas, et al. Not Straight From Germany : Sexual Publics and Sexual Citizenship Since Magnus Hirschfeld. University of Michigan Press, 2017. 

Bullough, Vern L. “Magnus Hirschfeld, an Often Overlooked Pioneer.” Sexuality & Culture, vol. 7, no. 1, Winter 2003, p. 62. 

LEWIS, BRIAN. “Magnus Hirschfeld and the Quest for Sexual Freedom: A History of the First International Sexual Freedom Movement.” Journal of the History of Sexuality, vol. 22, no. 2, May 2013, pp. 351–353.

DRUCKER, PETER. “Science and Sex: Hirschfeld’s Legacy.” New Politics, vol. 15, no. 2, Winter 2015, p. 124.

Caplan, Jane. “The Administration of Gender Identity in Nazi Germany.” History Workshop Journal, vol. 72, no. 1, Oct. 2011, pp. 171–180.





In-depth explanation, with more sources and videos:

While I expect other answers to include more general areas of science, I would like to take this to discuss another area of science that is often overlooked and frowned upon.

Although his work does not fall into the area I will touch upon on this answer, Nobel Laureate Professor and biophysicist known for his research of heat and mechanical work in muscles, Archibald Vivian "AV" Hill, wrote a letter in 1934 to British economist and social activist Lord Beveridge, saying something that would apply to **every** field of science in Nazi Germany:

*"It is not that these academics will perish as human beings, but that as scholars and scientists, they will be heard of no more, since they will have to take up something else in order to live."*

With that, it is evident that while Hill was aware of the persecution of scientists that was going to take place within the existence of Hitler's regime. However, it seems that he is underestimating the degree to which **how** horrifically science would be vilified.

On May 10th, 1933, the world would only get a small glimpse as to what was to come for Nazi Germany. That night, the infamous Joseph Goebbels took thousands of works by Jewish authors and scientists; along with other authors and scientists they viewed to be "degenerate", and burned them. These would only be a fraction of the tens of thousands of works that would be burned under The Third Reich.

In response to her books being burned, American blind and deaf author and activist, Helen Keller, wrote, *"You may burn my books and the books of the best minds in Europe, but the ideas those books contain have passed through millions of channels and will go on."* She was absolutely right. **Some of the most important and influential works that were burned that night belonged to an institute founded by a Jewish scientist who strongly advocated for the rights of another group The Nazis would persecute as well: LGBT+ people.**

The Institut für Sexualwissenschaft, or Institute for Sexology, was the only institute of its kind at the time. The institute had been established by Jewish scientist Magnus Hirschfeld in 1919, who had been practicing naturopathology in the 1890s and came across many homosexual patients who had attempted suicide. That, along with anguish over the trial of Oscar Wilde, let him to establish the Scientific-Humanitarian Committee--**the very first LGBT+ rights organization in world history.** The organization's motto, "Justice through science" was a reflection of Hirschfeld’s view that scientific research to prove that homosexuality was natural would held erase homophobia (but more specifically, Paragraph 175 of the German Imperial Criminal Code, which punished homosexuality).

Known as "The Einstein of Sex", his work was often scrutinized even before The Nazis rose to power. Sex was viewed as a very taboo topic in these times, no one would dare to touch upon it other than in the bedroom. But Hirschfeld changed everything with his scientific work. He was a pioneer. No one else had ever attempted to bring this topic into the public eye like he did. When asked why he wrote his book, *Berlins drittes Geschlecht* (Berlin’s Third Sex), for a rather general audience, he responded:

*"While the results of my research into the field of homosexuality have only been published in specialist journals to date...it has long been clear to me that knowledge of an area that is intertwined with the interests of so many families, of every class, would not and could not remain forever confined in the closed community of specialists or academic circles."*

He strongly believed that if sexuality is such an important aspect of human life, then everyone should be able to access information about sex without fear or prejudice. He was a strong advocate for sex education in schools, as he wrote, *“sexual science . . . has not yet been found worthy of being integrated into the curriculum of any university . . . we view it as a stroke of fortune that we were able to create a place of instruction \[Lehrstätte\] for doctors and medical students in addition to our textbook \[Lehrbuch\] for sexual pathology within the Institute for Sexual Science.”*

He was a major pioneer for people that are today known as transgender and intersex people. He coined the term *transvestism,* which would be considered the proper term for what we know to be *transgenderism.* He coined this term, as many people who were "cross-dressing" back in the day did not want to be viewed as homosexuals, but rather as a different gender than their birth sex. He also invented the term *pseudohermaphrodite* or *hermaphrodite* to refer to intersex people. However, all of these terms have been abused and are thus now considered to be offensive--but they were extremely important back then, because there would finally be a term for transgender and intersex people to describe their identities. 

Not only did Hirschfeld create these terms, but he also issued *transvestite passes:* identification for transgender individuals to show policemen if they were to possibly be arrested for cross-dressing. The card [**here**](https://imgur.com/odZRb3L) reads, "The worker Eva Katter, born on 14 March 1910 and residing in Britz Muthe-sisushof 8, is known here as someone who wears male clothing. Strewe, Police Commissioner.” He also created passports for transgender people, which you can see [**here**](https://imgur.com/JmEl8g6)**.** 

Also, [**here's**](https://imgur.com/nYLTQ87) a picture of transgender people standing outside of his institute.

Not only that, but he was a major help with the world's first sex reassignment surgery, on a transgender woman, model and former painter named Lili Elbe. In the 1910s, she had become increasingly comfortable with identifying and dressing as a woman. She was known to be very [**beautiful**](https://imgur.com/YaHnHWb)**;** however, only her closest friends knew that she was born a male. The surgery was completed in multiple operations within a two year span. However, she was unable to complete the final operation in her journey, a uterus transplant, because she suffered from cardiac arrest two months after her labiaplasty due to an infection which was unable to be treated. However, this paved the way for today's sex reassignment surgeries, which are extremely important for many transgender individuals.


Unlike many other scientists, he was extremely against the classification of non-heterosexual sexualities and transgenderism as mental illnesses. He believed that human sexuality was extremely diverse, and that all sexualities and transgenderism were completely natural as they connect to each other in a way. [**Here**](https://imgur.com/V6GeZ11) is a diagram he mapped out to describe this.

Among his many other achievements in the field of sexology, someone in his institute created the very first questionnaire for human sexuality. The name of this specific author is unknown and we may never know the findings that were collected from thousands of people, as nearly all of the questionnaires were burned with almost every other work in the institute by The Nazis. [**Here**](https://imgur.com/JP0RmCL) is a picture of one of these questionnaires that were able to be recovered. The scribbles on the cover say, “found in the Institute on 9 November 1933,” and under that, “to be care-fully preserved for references in articles or speeches against these activities from 1918 to 1932.” This suggests that the Nazis were going to use this as antisemitic propaganda, as homosexuality was considered to be an "un-german activity."

The institute became a safe haven for LGBT+ people. As demonstrated in [**this picture**](https://imgur.com/88r5gPQ), they used the institute to express their sexualities and genders, as they were not able to in the outside world. 

Hirschfeld's institute was met by some 20,000 visitors/tourists and thousands of regular patients every year. It was home to 20,000 volumes of work and 35,000 photographs. It was a center for researching sexuality, marriage counseling services, advice and education on contraception, and helped with individual sex problems a patient may have had. 

During the book burnings, The Nazis made their hatred towards Hirschfeld very clear. In fact, the way he was represented during the burnings was extremely distinct and much more cruel than many other authors. Students from a nearby university had created a plaster bust of Hirschfeld, placed it near the podium for speakers and burned it along with his work. [**Here**](https://imgur.com/88r5gPQ) is an image of that horrific scene. 

As a result of these burnings, the entire institute shut down due to its entire library being ransacked and being set on fire. Had it not been for the burnings, our society might be much more accepting of homosexuality, bisexuality and transgenderism, intersex people as well as be more knowledgeable and comfortable with discussing sex and contraceptives.

Only a couple of days after the burnings, Hirschfeld went into exile in France. [**Here**](https://imgur.com/88r5gPQ) is a Nazi propaganda piece picturing a caricature of him seemingly "enjoying" his time in exile, with exaggerated feminine features to demonstrate his own homosexuality. During his time in exile, he continued to research and write in secret. He planned on opening another institute in France as a successor to the one plundered by The Nazis. In the preface of his very last published book in 1935,  L'Ame et l'amour, psychologie sexologique (The Human Spirit and Love: Sexological Psychology), he writes about hoping to start a new life in Paris.

*"In search of sanctuary, I have found my way to that country, the nobility of whose traditions, and whose ever-present charm, have already been as balm to my soul. I shall be glad and grateful if I can spend some few years of peace and repose in France and Paris, and still more grateful to be enabled to repay the hospitality accorded to me, by making available those abundant stores of knowledge acquired throughout my career."*

Unfortunately, he did not get a chance to do this, as he passed away in May 1935 from a heart attack. Before his death, he was working on a book entitled "Rassimus" or "Racism", where he wrote about how he believed the societal construct of race was simply an excuse for white supremacy and hatred towards non-white people--an idea which was extremely unpopular back in the day, but has become much more popular today. The book was posthumously published in 1938.

Sadly, his sister was gassed in Auschwitz in 1942. Tens of thousands of the very people he advocated for were murdered by The Nazis as well.

Thankfully, his work had already been published and was only recently rediscovered. **You can read much of his work** [**here**](https://archive.org/search.php?query=%28%28subject%3A%22Hirschfeld%2C+Magnus%22+OR+subject%3A%22Magnus+Hirschfeld%22+OR+creator%3A%22Hirschfeld%2C+Magnus%22+OR+creator%3A%22Magnus+Hirschfeld%22+OR+creator%3A%22Hirschfeld%2C+M.%22+OR+title%3A%22Magnus+Hirschfeld%22+OR+description%3A%22Hirschfeld%2C+Magnus%22+OR+description%3A%22Magnus+Hirschfeld%22%29+OR+%28%221868-1935%22+AND+Hirschfeld%29%29+AND+%28-mediatype%3Asoftware%29) . They have 68 of his works in German, 12 in English and 2 in French. 

**He also starred in and directed the very first movie that depicted homosexuality in a positive light. It's called "Different From The Others" and was produced in 1919. It's a 50-minute long silent film with writing in English, and you can watch it** [**here**](https://vimeo.com/251002359) **for free.**

​





LeVay, Simon. Queer Science : The Use and Abuse of Research Into Homosexuality. The MIT Press, 1996

The transgender community has a high rates of suicide attempts because of discrimination against us, not because we're trans. 

* [Kyle K. H. Tan, et al., 2020](https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/15532739.2020.1819504?journalCode=wijt21) Study finds that transgender people who have experienced stigma, including harassment, violence, and discrimination because of their identity are much more likely to have poor mental health outcomes.

* [Perez-Brumer, 2017](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0890856717303167?via%3Dihub): "Mediation analyses demonstrated that established psychosocial factors, including depression and school-based victimization, partly explained the association between gender identity and suicidal ideation."

* [Seelman, 2016](https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00918369.2016.1157998): "Findings indicate relationships between denial of access to bathrooms and gender-appropriate campus housing and increased risk for suicidality, even after controlling for interpersonal victimization in college. "

* [Klein, Golub, 2016](https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/lgbt.2015.0111): "After controlling for age, race/ethnicity, sex assigned at birth, binary gender identity, income, education, and employment status, family rejection was associated with increased odds of both behaviors. Odds increased significantly with increasing levels of family rejection."

* [Miller, Grollman, 2015](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/socf.12193): "The results suggest that gender nonconforming trans people face more discrimination and, in turn, are more likely to engage in health‐harming behaviors than trans people who are gender conforming."

If we're supported in our transition, suicide rates actually go down:

* [Bauer, et al., 2015](http://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-015-1867-2): Transition vastly reduces risks of suicide attempts, and **the farther along in transition someone is the lower that risk gets**.

* [de Vries, et al, 2014](http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/early/2014/09/02/peds.2013-2958): A clinical protocol of a multidisciplinary team with mental health professionals, physicians, and surgeons, including puberty suppression, followed by cross-sex hormones and gender reassignment surgery, provides trans youth the opportunity to develop into well-functioning young adults. All showed significant improvement in their psychological health, and they had notably lower rates of internalizing psychopathology than previously reported among trans children living as their natal sex. **Well-being was similar to or better than same-age young adults from the general population**.

* Gorton, 2011 (Prepared for the San Francisco Department of Public Health): “In a cross-sectional study of 141 transgender patients,[ Kuiper and Cohen-Kittenis](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3219066) found that **after medical intervention and treatments, suicide fell from 19 percent to zero percent in transgender men and from 24 percent to 6 percent in transgender women**.)”

* [Murad, et al., 2010](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19473181): "Significant decrease in suicidality post-treatment. **The average reduction was from 30% pretreatment to 8% post treatment.**"

* [De Cuypere, et al., 2006](http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1158136006000491): **Rate of suicide attempts dropped dramatically from 29.3% to 5.1%** after receiving medical and surgical treatment among Dutch patients treated from 1986-2001.

* [UK study](http://www.gires.org.uk/assets/Medpro-Assets/trans_mh_study.pdf): "Suicidal ideation and actual attempts reduced after transition, with 63% thinking about or attempting suicide more before they transitioned and **only 3% thinking about or attempting suicide more post-transition**.

* [Heylens, 2014](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24344788): Found that **the psychological state of transgender people "resembled those of a general population after hormone therapy was initiated."** 

* [Perez-Brumer, 2017](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0890856717303167?via%3Dihub): "These findings suggest that interventions that address depression and school-based victimization could decrease gender identity-based disparities in suicidal ideation."
_____________________________________________________________

Of all the stats about transgender discrimination, one stands out most sharply to me, because it is something that brings together all the overlapping forms of visible and invisible discrimination under a single umbrella.

**The average life expectancy of a trans woman in the Americas (North and South) is 33 years.**

This is for trans women of all ethnicities - there is no study on life expectancy for trans women of colour specifically that i know of, but black trans women certainly are dying younger than that. ON AVERAGE. This is not just about three murders - this is about the life of every trans woman, and especially trans poc who are dying young even without being murdered by cops. That 33 stat is based on one of the largest and most conclusive studies of transgender people living in the Americas (half of respondents were from USA and Canada and half from Mexico and SA. Sources for all figures below).

For comparison, the average life expectancy of a woman in the americas is 78 years. That is a 45 year difference, and it means that most trans women do not make it to mid-life. Atleast we avoid that crisis, lord knows there are enough lol. The reasons for this horrifying statistic (of which I read the report and fact checked) are entangled and stem not just from murder and suicide but from an overlay of oppressions, neglect, rejections, and abuses. From the same study:

>"Violence against trans persons, particularly trans women, is the result of a combination of factors: exclusion, discrimination and violence within the family, schools, and society at large; lack of recognition of their gender identity; involvement in occupations that puts them at a higher risk for violence; and high criminalization of trans women. Trans women and other gender non-conforming persons are often targeted by law enforcement agents, who tend to act based on prejudice and assume they are criminals; and are often discriminated against in the justice system, which has a tendency to subject trans women to a stricter application of the law and harsher penalties.”

Keep in mind, many of these stats are significantly under-reported. Nonetheless they are alarming. In the US, trans people of all types face an overlay of discrimination that together creates a powerful system of inequality that leads to poverty, abuse, and death in staggering numbers, and a significantly reduced average life expectancy. 

* Despite the fact trans women make up only 4.5% of the LGBT community, two thirds of reported hate murders against LGBT people each year are murders of trans people, overwhelmingly transgender women of color. And the numbers have been rising steadily. This problem is not going away, IT IS GETTING WORSE.

* 57% of transgender people whose families had rejected them felt they had no option but death and attempted suicide. 70% of those who suffered physical or sexual violence at school attempted suicide.

* 47% of US transgender people have been sexually assaulted.

* 46% of US transgender people have been verbally harassed in the past year because of being transgender.

* 39% of US transgender people experienced serious psychological distress in the month prior to completing the survey, compared with only 5% of the U.S. population. Among the starkest findings is that 40% of respondents have attempted suicide in their lifetime—nine times the attempted suicide rate in the U.S. population.

* 36% have lost their job due to their gender. 55% have been discriminated against in hiring because of their gender identity. 29% have been denied a promotion because of their gender identity.

* 33% of US transgender people who saw a health care provider were verbally harassed or refused treatment because of their gender identity in the past year alone. This causes a ripple effect where 23% of trans people did not seek necessary medical care for fear of abuse. 33% did not because they could not afford it.

* 33% of transgender Americans have been harassed when displaying identity documents that outed them as trans.

* 30% of US transgender people have experienced homelessness at some point in their lifetime, and 12% reported experiencing homelessness in the year prior to completing the survey because they were transgender. 60% of the trans women that have visited a homeless shelter reported incidents of harassment there.

* 29% of US transgender people are living in poverty.

* 20% reported harassment by police, with 6% reporting physical assault and 3% reporting sexual assault by an officer. Among jailed trans women, 40% have been harassed by inmates, 38% have been harassed by STAFF, 21% have been physically assaulted, and 20% have been sexually assaulted.

* 17% of trans youth experienced such severe mistreatment because of their identity that they left a school as a result.


-----

If you want to help, you could pick up some of this slack in YOUR community, so that the most vulnerable are not the ones left with the emotional labor on top of their own recovery. You could donate your time, your money, or your emotional labor - whichever is what you have available - to friends, to your immediate community, or to charity organizations like Trans Lifeline (button attached to this post).

if you have neither money nor time, you can make a difference in your immediate life. Challenge bigoted narratives when you see them. Reach out to your friends who are trans and just spend time with them instead of making it about their gender, listen to their struggles if they feel like sharing, help with what you can. I’ve let this status be public so that you can share it if you like, or better yet, take these stats and share them with your own heartfelt words. Lastly, read a book by a trans woman, or even better a trans woman of colour. I’m about to start Janet Mock’s “Redefining Realness: My Path to Womanhood, Identity, Love & So Much More” so you can read it along with me if you like. Its 6 bucks paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1476709130/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_4XT1DbYE1SNTJ

Lastly, I ask you to consider how your life be different without 45 years. If this affected your life directly, what political actions would you take to save yourself from losing 45 years? If this affected you, what would you do to save yourself, your community, and your closest loved ones from having a life expectancy 45 years less than the norm?

Even if this doesn’t affect you directly, what are you willing to do to to not live in a world where this is the case?


------

sources:

The 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey (USTS) is the largest survey examining the experiences of transgender people in the United States, with 27,715 respondents from all fifty states, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, and U.S. military bases overseas: https://www.transequality.org/sites/default/files/docs/USTS-Full-Report-FINAL.PDF

A survey of roughly 3000 trans women living in the United States, as summarized in the report "Injustice at Every Turn: A Report of the National Transgender Discrimination Survey”: https://www.transequality.org/sites/default/files/docs/resources/NTDS_Report.pdf

Inter America Commision study (life expectancy number): http://www.oas.org/en/iachr/lgtbi/docs/Annex-Registry-Violence-LGBTI.pdf

A 2014 survey from The Williams Institute of 6,546 respondents “Suicide Attempts among Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming Adults”: https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/AFSP-Williams-Suicide-Report-Final.pdf


EDIT:

Here is the full quote from the study for you pedants out there (source three). the study was by the inter-american commission, and it specifically mentions this is for life expectancy of trans women "in the Americas" as I did. You can read more about the study yourself as well:

>In terms of the age of the victims, the IACHR notes
>that while it seems gay men of all ages are targeted,
>in the case of trans women, it is mostly younger trans
>women who are victims of violence. **In this regard,
>the IACHR has received information that the life
>expectancy of trans women in the Americas is
>between 30 and 35 years of age.** The Inter-American
>Commission is particularly concerned about the young 
>age of trans victims. According to the data
>collected, approximately 80% of trans persons killed
>were 35 years of age or younger. Violence against
>trans persons, particularly trans women, is the
>result of a combination of factors: exclusion,
>discrimination and violence within the family,
>schools, and society at large; lack of recognition of
>their gender identity; involvement in occupations
>that puts them at a higher risk for violence; and high
>criminalization of trans women. Trans women and
>other gender non-conforming persons are often
>targeted by law enforcement agents, who tend to act
>based on prejudice and assume they are criminals;
>and are often discriminated against in the justice
>system, which has a tendency to subject trans women
>to a stricter application of the law and harsher
>penalties.

This also matches my experience in trans support groups and rallies on multiple continents, as well as literally hundreds of conversations with other trans women i've had. If you've ever talked to a trans woman over 35, especially a trans woman of colour, and ask her how many of her trans friends from when she was younger are still alive, (and I have asked this specific question of trans women in multiple countries, including one who lives in NYC), then you would often hear that by 35 you are lucky to have half of your sisters left. I go to a handful of funerals every single year for trans women in their 20s, and those are just ones in my community (and theres not a lot of us - despite trans women making up 0.3% of the population and maybe 10% of my friends, they account for 90% of my funerals)


_____________________________________________________________



What gender dysphoria feels like 


This is an analogy I used to tell people, I don’t know if it helps but maybe. 

Gender is a lot like a pair of shoes. If you have on a good, comfortable, well fitting pair, you don’t notice it or think about it. As you walk around you aren’t constantly thinking about your shoes and the comfort, it’s just there and fine and normal and it doesn’t concern you one single bit. It’s almost hard to notice because if they feel fine it seems to silly and unimportant to spend energy thinking about it. 

But if your shoes are too small and tight or there is a rock in them it’s all you can think about. Every step is annoying and miserable and you don’t want to do anything else until you fix this damned rock. Doing anything else seems crazy until your shoes stop hurting you. 

So I think in that sense, most people probably can’t really conceptualize the feeling of their gender well because it just fits right and always has, so it’s hard to imagine how all the small, normal things just constantly feel wrong, even if you are alone in your home. 


_____________________________________________________________


#It'S a BiOloGiCaL fAcT tHaT tHeRe ArE oNly 2 sExeS.
The brain is sexually dimorphic. Men and women literally have different brains. This differentiation starts in the womb. It is caused by hormones.

Ever hear of murphys law?

Chromosomes are like blueprints. Shit goes wrong in nature, human development can get fucked up. XX is supposed to be the female path and XY is supposed to be the male path. Everyone starts off on the same path, that’s why men have nipples. The Y chromosome doesn’t actually do much. It pretty much just signals a flood of testosterone to occur and diverts the fetus down the male path. Which path the brain and gonads go down is all set by hormones. The brain and the gonads develop at different times, which is why mismatches can occur. Too much testosterone exposure during brain development in the womb can make an XX individual develop a male brain gender. Lack of testosterone exposure during brain development in the womb can make an XY individual develop a female brain gender.

There has been a ton of studies on this. There are biological factors. The Wikipedia page is a good start. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Causes_of_transsexuality#Biological_factors

This paper represents the first comprehensive review of the scientific evidence that gender identity is a biological phenomenon.
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/840538

There are numerous studies that show there is a neurological basis of gender identity, which forms during gestation and does not always match the rest of one's anatomy.

This wikipedia article is a good place to start reading. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Causes_of_transsexuality#Brain_structure

#TrAnSiTiOn DoEsN't HeLp. 

It's a myth that the suicide rate is still extremely high for trans people who have transitioned. You should know that this is from a purposely misrepresented study and spread by an anti LGBT hate group. Unfortunately these lies were picked up and spread by the media.

The infamous 40% statistic is specifically referring to *lifetime risk*, without regards to whether the patient attempted suicide before or after transition.

When looking at studies that *do* distinguish between suicide attempts before vs. after transition, we see that nearly all of these attempts happen before. After transition, the rate of suicide attempts drops to around the national average.

This is very literally life saving medical treatment.

Transition [**vastly reduces suicide risk**](http://www.torontosun.com/2015/06/08/suicide-rate-much-higher-for-transgender-canadians-study). The farther along in transition a trans person is, the lower the suicide risk becomes. After transition, and when spared discrimination and abuse, the rate of suicide attempts among trans people people are about the same as the national average. The ability to transition, along with family and social acceptance, are the [**largest factors reducing suicide risk among trans people**](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3722435/).

There are a [***lot***](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24344788) of [**studies**](http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10508-009-9551-1) showing that [**transition**](https://mayoclinic.pure.elsevier.com/en/publications/hormonal-therapy-and-sex-reassignment-a-systematic-review-and-met) [**improves**](https://www.hindawi.com/journals/tswj/2014/960745/) [**mental health**](http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/25690443) and [**quality of life**](http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10508-014-0453-5) while [**reducing dysphoria**](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/23553588_Long-term_Assessment_of_the_Physical_Mental_and_Sexual_Health_among_Transsexual_Women).

Not to mention [**this 2010 meta-analysis**](http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2265.2009.03625.x/abstract) of 28 different studies, which found that transition is extremely effective at reducing dysphoria and improving quality of life.

The claim that transition does not dramatically reduce suicide risk is a deliberately dishonest misrepresentation of [**this study**](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3043071/), popularized by Paul McHugh, a religious extremist and [**leading member**](https://thinkprogress.org/hate-group-masquerading-as-pediatricians-attacks-transgender-youth-544e755c6a20) of an anti-gay and anti-trans [**hate group**](http://www.snopes.com/americas-pediatricians-gender-kids/), who presents himself as a reputable source but publishes work without peer review. His claim to fame is having shut down the Johns Hopkins trans health program in the 70's, which he did not based on medical evidence but on his personal ideological opposition to transition. Johns Hopkins has [**resumed offering transition related medical care**](http://transadvocate.com/johns-hopkins-resumes-trans-care_n_19077.htm), including reconstructive surgery, and their faculty are finally [**disavowing**](http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bs-ed-lgbtq-hopkins-20160928-story.html) him for his irresponsible and ideologically motivated misrepresentation of the current science of sex and gender.

That study's lead author Dr. Dhejne had [**emphatically denounced**](http://www.transadvocate.com/fact-check-study-shows-transition-makes-trans-people-suicidal_n_15483.htm) McHugh and his misuse of her work. Her study found only that trans patients who transitioned prior to 1989 had a somewhat higher risk of suicide attempts as compared to the *general public.* These rates were still far lower than the rates of suicide attempts among trans people prior to transition, and Dr. Dhejne specifically identified the higher rates of abuse abuse and discrimination trans people suffered 27+ years ago as the source of greater risk of suicide attempts among this population.

Dr. Dhejne's study found no difference in rates of suicide attempts between trans people who transitioned after 1989, and the general public.

This overwhelming evidence for the efficacy and necessity of transition, is why it is the *only* treatment for dysphoria recommended and recognized as an effective by all major US and world medical and psychological authorities.

* Here is the [**American Psychiatric Association's policy statement**](http://www.apa.org/about/policy/transgender.aspx) regarding the necessity and efficacy of transition as the appropriate treatment for gender dysphoria. More information from the APA [**here**](http://www.apa.org/pi/lgbt/programs/transgender/?tab=1)

* Here is a [**resolution from the American Medical Association**](http://www.tgender.net/taw/ama_resolutions.pdf) on the efficacy and necessity of transition as appropriate treatment for gender dysphoria, and call for an end to insurance companies categorically excluding transition-related care from coverage.

* Here is the policy statement from the [**American College of Physicians**](http://annals.org/aim/article/2292051/lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender-health-disparities-executive-summary-policy-position)

* Here are the guidelines from the [**American Academy of Pediatrics**](http://hrc-assets.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com//files/documents/SupportingCaringforTransChildren.pdf)

* Here  is the resolution from the [**American Academy of Family Physicians**]( http://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/about_us/special_constituencies/2012RCAR_Advocacy.pdf)
* [**Here**](http://www.teni.ie/attachments/14767e01-a8de-4b90-9a19-8c2c50edf4e1.PDF) are the treatment guidelines from the Royal College of Psychiatrists

* [**Here**](http://www.wlmht.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Gender-dysphoria-guide-for-GPs-and-other-healthcare-staff.pdf) are guidelines from the NHS. More from the NHS [**here**](http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Gender-dysphoria/Pages/Treatment.aspx).


#tRaNs PeOpLe ShOuLdN't TrAnSiTioN tHeY sHoUlD gEt MeNtAl HeLp InStEaD. 

Some have a lot of dysphoria, others a little. Many after finding support and access to medical care find the dysphoria lessens greatly. Many after they reached their transition goals don't even feel like it's an issue anymore.

The biggest factor is how much distress the dysphoria causes. How you respond to dysphoria is the indicator of mental stability or lack of.

If depression or anxiety or profound dysfunction arises in conjunction with the gender identity, then it is treated, with evidence-based care.

Seeing a psychiatrist and other mental health professionals is part of the transition process.

You are constantly being evaluated and offered services as needed. You have to meet with psychologists and all surgeons require it. You need to get letters of recommendation from mental health professionals and the doctors that have been overseeing your transition.

Here is a surgeon and she herself is trans. She still makes you get multiple letters of recommendation from doctors and shrinks that are overseeing your transition.

http://www.drchristinemcginn.com/services/srs/

If you are against transition, do you think everything listed in the The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders shouldn't be treated with evidence based care or just Gender Dysphoria?

Gender Dysphoria has a known and effective treatment and that's transitioning. It's the only known effective treatment with a high success rate.

Which is why every major medical association agrees recognizes the efficacy, benefit and medical necessity of gender transition treatments for appropriately evaluated individuals and calls upon public and private insurers to cover these medically necessary treatments.

The existence of trans people has recently become a hot issue but trans people have always existed. There are many decades of research behind the current standards of care. There is a very long history of conversion therapy and denying gender affirming care. There is a very long history of that not working.

_____________________________________________________________


Jk Rowling 


Answer:

J. K. Rowling (author of the *Harry Potter* book series) has... somewhat of a history of statements that have been construed as being anti-trans (and promoting people whose statements are *definitely* anti-trans). In this particular case, she tweeted in response to a specific article entitled [*Opinion: Creating a more equal post-COVID-19 world for people who menstruate*](https://www.devex.com/news/sponsored/opinion-creating-a-more-equal-post-covid-19-world-for-people-who-menstruate-97312#.XtwLnv0aEeR.twitter):

>[‘People who menstruate.’ I’m sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?](https://twitter.com/jk_rowling/status/1269382518362509313)

Now, quite aside from the trans issue -- which we'll be getting to in a sec -- there are plenty of issues with what she said. If her objection is to them replacing the phrase 'People who menstruate' with 'women', the article was specifically about the provision of sanitary and menstrual supplies around the globe; if her objection is to them using the word 'people' instead of 'women', there are plenty of cis-females who we wouldn't count as 'women'. (Menstruation normally starts at around age twelve, and it's not unusual to be as early as ten -- not a 'woman' by any reasonable definition.) For a lot of people, then, it feels like Rowling went out of her way to make a transphobic shot at an article that made the barest effort to include non-cis women. (Quite literally the only reference to non-cis women in the article is the following line: 'An estimated 1.8 billion girls, women, and gender non-binary persons menstruate, and this has not stopped because of the pandemic.' That's *it*. This is not an article that's doing its best to wade into the trans debate, and it's *very much* been dragged there.)

But this fits into a larger pattern of behaviour for Rowling, which is why people are so willing to crack down on her now. This is not even the first time *this year* she's been embroiled in a story like this; there was also the case of the #IStandWithMaya hashtag. (I wrote a long, *long* breakdown of that story [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/OutOfTheLoop/comments/ectnwr/what_is_going_on_with_jk_rowling_being_called/fbdn40x/), which goes into more detail; I'm re-using some of that material now to explain Rowling's history rather than typing it all out again.)

#A Brief History of Rowling and TERFs

There's a bit of history with J. K. Rowling and cases of potential -- or at least rumoured -- sympathy for TERF causes. (TERF, in this case, stands for [Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TERF); it's a big sticking point within feminist movements, but it's *usually* not considered a compliment.) For TERFs, one of the main points of contention is with the idea that trans women (here defined as 'people who were assigned male at birth, but who don't identify with being male now) aren't 'real' women. As such, there's a general opposition to specific rights and access to things like female-only spaces and workplace protection based on gender; it's illegal to discriminate in employment based on sex in the UK, and that includes cis/trans status. (For anyone who's confused about the specifics of sex and gender, and exactly what the difference is between the two, I wrote a BestOf'ed piece that touched on the topic [**here**](https://np.reddit.com/r/OutOfTheLoop/comments/9qzjg1/whats_going_on_with_transgendered_people_and/e8cwc4m/) that should serve as a primer.)

Rowling isn't unique in this, by any stretch. There have been a number of relatively high-profile individuals on Twitter who have found themselves at odds with the trans community based on what are often views as regressive views. Graham Linehan, creator of *Father Ted*, *Black Books* and *The IT Crowd*, regularly courts controversy with his TERF views, and *Doctor Who* writer Gareth Roberts has his work cut from a then-upcoming story anthology because of [anti-trans tweets](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-48526656). Rowling has been singled out, perhaps because she has a reputation for being progressive -- or pandering to progressives, depending on which side of the argument you fall down on -- but also because she hasn't publicly come out and said her views either way. There was minor outrage when, in March 2018, Rowling liked a tweet that said that 'men in dresses' were treated better than women; however, her representative later [said it was an accident](https://www.indy100.com/article/jk-rowling-tweet-transphobic-men-dresses-harry-potter-8268111), stating: 'I’m afraid JK Rowling had a clumsy and middle-aged moment and this is not the first time she has favourited by holding her phone incorrectly.'

In [June of 2019](https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/jk-rowling-transphobia-transgender/), a viral blog post suggested that Rowling was a TERF based on her following a notable YouTuber who aligned herself with the TERF movement, [Magdalen Berns](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magdalen_Berns). Berns has said some stuff that many people didn't agree with, including that trans women are 'blackface actors' and 'men who get sexual kicks from being treated like women'. (Berns, it's worth noting, was a lesbian and intimately involved with the LGBT activist community; conflicts around the issue of whether trans women are somehow contrary to the idea of lesbianism, or whether one is inherently exclusionary to the other, have been [pretty significant](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lesbian_erasure#In_relation_to_transgender_women).) Snopes gave this a rating of 'false', but it was with the -- entirely reasonable -- caveat that retweets and follows aren't the same as a full-throated endorsement of all of someone's views:

>It’s not clear what Rowling’s motivations or reasons were for the follows and likes highlighted by Fairchild and others, and it’s not clear what Rowling’s views are on trans issues. As such, the claim that she had “confirmed [her] stance against transgender women” was false on two grounds. First, Rowling had not herself made substantive public utterances about trans issues, so there was no clear “stance” to be confirmed, and second, even if there had been, Rowling’s following of Berns’ account in June 2019 would not constitute relevant reliable evidence, since it had several possible explanations.

(Berns died of a brain tumour in September 2019. That's not really relevant to the story here, but if you're wondering why she hasn't chimed in over this, there's your explanation.)

#\#RowlingStandsWithMaya

So Rowling has been on a lot of people's TERF-radars for a while now. This came to a head recently with the case of [Maya Forstater](https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/dec/18/judge-rules-against-charity-worker-who-lost-job-over-transgender-tweets), a visiting fellow at the Centre for Global Development (CGD), an international thinktank that campaigns against poverty and inequality. This is a charitable organisation based in Washington and London, where Forstater was a tax expert. Her contract expired and was not renewed in March 2019; Forstater claims this is as a direct result of several tweets she made opposing the idea that sex changes were even possible, or that trans individuals should be seen and referred to as the gender they claim. She lost an employment tribunal where she claimed that she had been unfairly discriminated against due to her comments. (Forstater had actually doubled-down on her comments; when she first heard the complaints against her, in December 2018, she noted: '“I have been told that it is offensive to say "transwomen are men" or that women means "adult human female". However since these statement[s] are true I will continue to say them.') You can read an absolute smorgasbord of anti-trans statements from Forstater [in the judgement](https://drive.google.com/file/d/12P9zf82TicPs2cCxlTnm0TrNFDD8Gaz5/view), so the idea that's being touted is that it's just because of a few tweets and no action is... flawed, at best.

Earlier this year, [Rowling tweeted](https://twitter.com/jk_rowling/status/1207646162813100033):

>Dress however you please.  
Call yourself whatever you like.  
Sleep with any consenting adult who’ll have you.  
Live your best life in peace and security.  
But force women out of their jobs for stating that sex is real?  
\#IStandWithMaya #ThisIsNotADrill

This was probably her most divisive tweet since she tweeted that [wizards used to just shit on the floor and vanish the evidence](https://news.avclub.com/j-k-rowling-reveals-that-wizards-used-to-just-shit-on-1831501641).

#[I'm running out of space; there's more here.](https://www.reddit.com/r/OutOfTheLoop/comments/gyc896/whats_going_on_with_jk_rowling/ft9v538/)



_____________________________________________________________

Common myths


Since anything relating to trans youth and medical treatment almost inevitably brings out the *"kids are being castrated!"* and *"90% of trans kids desist and will regret transition!"* concern trolling:

No, that is not how this works. That's not how any of this works. 

The *"90% desist"* claim is a myth based on debunked studies, and transition is a very long, slow, cautious process for trans youth. For preadolescents it is entirely social, and for adolescents the first line of medical care is 100% temporary puberty delaying treatment that has no long term effects. Hormone therapy isn't an option until their mid teens, by which point the chances that they will "desist" are close to zero. Reconstructive genital surgery is not an option until their late teens/early 20's at the youngest.

Any competent doctor or therapist who has any reasonable grasp of this topic should recognize that transition is vitally necessary, frequently life saving medical care for trans adolescence. And that if there is even a chance that an adolescent may be trans, there is absolutely no reason to withhold 100% temporary and fully reversible hormone blockers to delay puberty for a little while until they're sure.

According to the [**American Academy of Pediatrics**](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/gradeschool/Pages/Gender-Identity-and-Gender-Confusion-In-Children.aspx), gender identity is typically expressed by around age 4. It probably forms [**much earlier**](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3747736/) than that, but it's hard to tell with pre-verbal infants. And sometimes, the gender identity expressed is not the one typically associated with the child's appearance. The gender identities of trans children are as [**stable**](http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/early/2014/09/02/peds.2013-2958) as those of [**cisgender children**](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0956797614568156).

Regarding treatment for trans youth, [**here**](http://assets2.hrc.org/files/documents/SupportingCaringforTransChildren.pdf) are the guidelines released by the American Academy of Pediatrics. TL;DR version - yes, young children can identify their own gender identity, and some of those young kids are trans. A child whose gender identity is Gender A but who is assumed to be Gender B based on their appearance, will suffer debilitating distress over this conflict.

When this happens, transition is the treatment recommended by every major medical authority. For young children this process is purely social; it consists of allowing the child to express their gender identity as comes naturally to them. If they just have gender atypical interests or clothing preferences, let them have the toys and clothes they want. If they want to use a name or pronouns atypical to the gender they were previously assumed to be, let them do that too. If they later decide they don't want to do this anymore, nothing has been changed that can't be changed back in an afternoon. Let the child explore their gender, there's no reason not to.

For adolescents, the first line of medical intervention is puberty delaying treatment. This treatment is 100% temporary and fully reversible; it does nothing but buy time by delaying the onset of permanent physical changes. This treatment is very safe and well known, because it has been used for decades to delay puberty in children who would have otherwise started it inappropriately young. If an adolescent starts this treatment, then realizes medical transition isn't what they need, they stop treatment and puberty picks up where it left off. There are no permanent effects.

But if an adolescent starts this treatment, socially transitions (or continues if they have already done so), and by their early/mid-teens they still strongly identify as a gender atypical to their appearance at birth, the chances of them changing their minds later are basically zero. At that point hormone therapy becomes an option, and even that is still mostly reversible, especially in its early stages. The only really irreversible step is reconstructive genital surgery and/or the removal of one's gonads, which isn't an option until the patient is in their late teens at the earliest. 

This specter of little kids being pressured into transition and rapidly pushed into permanent physical changes is a complete myth. It just isn't happening. And this fear-mongering results in nothing except trans youth who desperately do need to transition being discouraged and prevented from doing so. Withholding medical treatment from an adolescent who desperately needs it is not a neutral option.

The only disorders more common among trans people are those associated with abuse and discrimination - mainly anxiety and depression. Early transition [**virtually eliminates these higher rates of depression and low self-worth**](http://www.jaacap.com/article/S0890-8567%2816%2931941-4/fulltext), and [**dramatically improves trans youth's mental health**](https://thinkprogress.org/allowing-transgender-youth-to-transition-improves-their-mental-health-study-finds-dd6096523375/#.pqspdcee0). When prevented from transitioning, about 40% of trans kids will attempt suicide. When able to transition, that rate drops to the national average. Trans kids who socially transition early, have access to appropriate transition related medical treatment, and who are not subjected to abuse or discrimination are [**comparable to cisgender children in measures of mental health**](https://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/134/4/696)

Transition [**vastly reduces risks of suicide attempts**](https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-015-1867-2), and the farther along in transition someone is the lower that risk gets. The ability to transition, along with family and social acceptance, are the [**largest factors reducing suicide risk among trans people**](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3722435/).

And "regret" rates among trans surgical patients (who again, are all young adults or older) are consistently found to be about 1% and falling. This includes a lot of people who are very happy they transitioned, and continue to live as a gender other than the one they were assigned at birth, but regret that medical error or shitty luck led to low quality surgical results.

This is a risk in any reconstructive surgery, and a success rate of about 99% is astonishingly good for any medical treatment. And "regret" rates have been going down for decades, as surgical methods improve.

* [**Care of the Patient Undergoing Sex Reassignment Surgery (SRS)**](http://www.amsa.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/CareOfThePatientUndergoingSRS.pdf) \- *Persistent regret among post-operative transsexuals has been studied since the early 1960s. The most comprehensive meta-review done to date analyzed 74 follow-up studies and 8 reviews of outcome studies published between 1961 and 1991 (1000-1600 MTF and 400-550 FTM patients). The authors concluded that in this 30 year period, <1% of female-to-males (FTMs) and 1-1.5% of male-to-females (MTFs) experienced persistent regret following SRS. Studies published since 1991 have reported a decrease in the incidence of regret for both MTFs and FTMs that is likely due to improved quality of psychological and surgical care for individuals undergoing sex reassignment.*
* [**Sex reassignment: outcomes and predictors of treatment for adolescent and adult transsexuals**](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15842032) \- regret rate of <1%
* [**An analysis of all applications for sex reassignment surgery in Sweden, 1960-2010: prevalence, incidence, and regrets.**](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24872188) \- regret rate of 2.2%