The American Academy of Pediatrics, American Psychological Association, Fenway Health, Yale, and more have condemned Trump’s transgender report as pseudoscience

Mira Lazine discusses widespread expert condemnation of a pseudoscientific report issued by the Trump administration over at Erin in the Morning. The report attacks gender-affirming care for transgender minors.

The report, published by the Department of Health and Human Services under Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has been criticized for misrepresenting medical consensus, ignoring scientific evidence, and prioritizing ideology over established healthcare guidelines.

Experts from the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Psychological Association, and Yale University have issued statements denouncing the report’s claims as false and harmful.

Several LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations, including GLAAD and Lambda Legal, have also condemned it.

The report is part of a broader political effort to restrict transgender rights, including military bans and immigration policies targeting trans individuals.

Read the article over at Erin in the Morning: “Experts from the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Psychological Association, Fenway Health, Yale, and many other organizations have condemned Trump’s report as pseudoscience.”

More about the report with links to articles, statements and resources here.

Cis woman harassed for being trans in women’s restroom

A security guard at Boston’s Liberty Hotel confronted a cisgender lesbian, Ansley Baker, in the women’s restroom, accusing her of being a man and demanding proof of her gender.

Baker and her girlfriend, Liz Victor, were attending a Kentucky Derby party when the incident occurred. The guard banged on stall doors, ordered Baker out, and later asked for identification to verify her gender. Other women in line also made derogatory comments toward Baker.

Initially, the hotel defended the guard’s actions, claiming guests had reported two adults occupying a single stall, but later retracted this statement after backlash. The hotel has since suspended the guard, pledged staff retraining, and promised a donation to an LGBTQ+ organization.

Victor emphasized that while the situation was distressing, trans women face similar discrimination daily. The couple hopes their experience raises awareness and prevents future incidents.

As we can see the transgender bathroom bans are now used to police the gender expression of all women, cis and trans, making sure that all adhere to the gender roles defined by TERFs, Republicans, fascists and religious fanatics.

Hotel Guard Barges Into Women’s Restroom, Accuses Lesbian Guest Of Being A Man
Woman says security guard at Liberty Hotel in Boston confronted her in bathroom, asked to prove gender

The Trump-administration publishes review of trans kids that is ignoring the scientific consensus

The Trump administration has released a 400-page review on gender dysphoria treatment for youth but has withheld the names of its authors. They are probably ashamed of all the fake science.

The US Department of Health and Human Services report claims that scientific evidence does not support gender-affirming medical interventions for minors, aligning with President Trump’s broader efforts to restrict transgender healthcare and research.

CNN writes that for years, major mainstream medical associations – including the American Medical Association, the American Psychiatric Association, the Endocrine Society, the American Psychological Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry – have affirmed the practice of gender-affirming care and agree that it’s clinically appropriate care that can provide lifesaving treatment for children and adults.

Many organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Psychological Association, have criticized the report, arguing that it misrepresents medical consensus and could harm transgender youth.

Studies show that gender-affirming care significantly reduces depression and suicide risk among trans individuals. A recent survey of more than 90,000 transgender people in the United States that found an overwhelming majority report more life satisfaction after having transitioned.

The administration has enacted policies banning federal funding for gender-affirming treatments and restricting transgender participation in sports. These moves are politically motivated rather than based on scientific evidence.

More on this here:

Gender transition care for trans children and teens lacks evidence of benefits and poses risks, according to a new report released by Trump. Medical experts describes it as poor quality research that threatens access to care.
Archive

Fact Check: Trump’s HHS Review On Trans Care Filled With Pseudoscience, Pushes Conversion Therapy

Trump’s HHS urges therapy for transgender youth, departing from broader gender-affirming health care

What does the HHS gender-affirming care report mean for trans rights?

Trump administration releases 400-page review of gender dysphoria treatment for youths but won’t say who wrote it

Inside the HHS Review on Trans Youth: Facts, Fears, Fallout

More resources on the HHS report on care for transgender children and youth

Bella Ramsey, Harris Dickinson, Nicola Coughlan, Paapa Essiedu and Molly Manning Walker are among TV and movie professionals who have signed an open letter in support of transgender people

Over 400 film and television professionals, including Bella Ramsey, Nicola Coughlan, and Harris Dickinson, have signed an open letter calling for industry action on trans rights following the UK Supreme Court ruling that defines a woman based on biological sex.

The letter, initiated by Sid Strickland and Jack Casey, expresses solidarity with trans, non-binary, and intersex communities affected by the ruling.

The ruling and subsequent Equalities & Human Rights Commission guidance will exclude trans people from many single-sex spaces, impacting workplaces, cinemas, and film sets. The letter urges industry bodies like BAFTA, BFI, and BBC to commit to protecting trans individuals.

The signatories argue that film and television have the power to foster empathy and education, and they call for the industry to be on the right side of history. The letter has gained significant support, with executives from major production companies also signing on.

Deadline has more.

The number of factors that may influence the development of someone’s “biological sex” is insane. Sex is far from binary.

For those who have not looked into the complexity of biological sex, here is an illustration from Scientific American that presents the main points.

Click here for full size image.

Anyone who tells you that determining “biological sex” is a simple procedure that anyone can do, do not understand the genetics, epigenetic and hormonal processes determining sex, and let alone gender identity.

Amanda Montanez writes:

Determination of biological sex is staggeringly complex, involving not only anatomy but an intricate choreography of genetic and chemical factors that unfolds over time. Intersex individuals—those for whom sexual development follows an atypical trajectory—are characterized by a diverse range of conditions…

You might argue that the many variations of “biological sex” represent statistical outliers, but relatively rare outliers like intersex and transgender people are also real people who deserve respect and protection.

Moreover, if genetic variation can lead to all these chromosome variations (XXY, XYY, XO, XXX, XXXY, XXYY etc), it should not come as a surprise that the complexity can lead to the development of brains where the inborn experience of being male or female collides with the visible sex.

And note that many people go around with chromosome variations they do not know about, because they have never felt the need to take a DNA test. Are you absolutely sure you are an XX female or an XY male?

(Estimates on the prevalence of intersex conditions range from 0.018% to 1.7%. The percentage of transgender people will also vary according to definitions and methodology, but an often mentioned number is around 2% of the population.)

Top illustration: DrAfter123

Nicola Coughlan defends trans women against British transphobes

Nicola Coughlan, star of Derry Girls and Bridgerton, has strongly criticized the UK Supreme Court ruling that legally defines women by biological sex.

She expressed frustration over people celebrating the removal of trans rights, stating that the only times she has felt threatened were by cisgender men, not trans women.

Speaking at Canneseries, Coughlan dismissed claims that trans women pose a danger in bathrooms, calling such fears baseless. She urged people to show true allyship beyond symbolic gestures like attending Pride events.

Coughlan has actively supported trans and non-binary communities, matching donations to the UK charity Not a Phase, which was at risk of shutting down due to lost corporate sponsorships. Her fundraising efforts helped raise £60,000 to keep the charity operational.

She also criticized the upcoming Harry Potter TV reboot, distancing herself from J.K. Rowling’s views on trans rights.

Sunday World has more.

The British Medical Association calls the UK Supreme Court transphobic ruling “scientifically illiterate”

The British Medical Association (BMA) has strongly criticized the UK Supreme Court’s recent ruling on transgender rights.

The union branch said it “condemns scientifically illiterate rulings from the Supreme Court, made without consulting relevant experts and stakeholders, that will cause real-world harm to the trans, non-binary and intersex communities in this country”.

The ruling states that trans women are not legally recognized as women under the Equality Act, allowing their exclusion from single-sex spaces if deemed “proportionate”.

While some politicians and gender-critical campaigners have welcomed the decision, the BMA argues that it lacks scientific basis and was made without consulting medical experts. The union’s resident doctors passed a motion condemning the ruling, warning that it could negatively impact trans healthcare and rights.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has issued interim guidance following the ruling, stating that trans women should not be permitted to use women’s facilities in workplaces and public spaces. Critics argue that this guidance forces trans individuals to reveal their gender history, violating their right to privacy.

Activists and medical professionals have expressed concerns about the broader implications of the ruling, fearing increased discrimination and challenges in accessing appropriate healthcare. The debate continues as the BMA prepares to finalize its official stance at an upcoming conference in June.

The Independent has more.

Illustration: Bonilla1879

Americans do not want the government to attack transgender people

A new 19th News/SurveyMonkey poll reveals that nearly half of Americans—49 percent—believe politicians should not be focusing on transgender issues, an increase from previous years.

Despite President Donald Trump’s efforts to restrict transgender rights in his second term, the poll shows diminishing enthusiasm for such policies across party lines.

While the majority of Americans (59 percent) support gender-affirming care for trans adults, only 43 percent support similar care for trans youth. However, 55 percent oppose bans on gender-affirming care for minors, including a significant portion of Republicans and Independents.

The poll also highlights changing Democratic perspectives, with fewer members of the party strongly advocating for transgender rights than before the election. Meanwhile, Republicans’ focus on restricting trans rights has slightly declined, with more of them preferring that politicians avoid the issue altogether.

The 19th has more.

Photo by ev on Unsplash

Transgender judge is taking the UK to the European court of human rights over the Supreme Court’s anti-trans ruling

Victoria McCloud, the UK’s first transgender judge, is taking legal action against the UK government at the European Court of Human Rights following a Supreme Court ruling on biological sex.

The ruling determined that the terms “woman” and “sex” in the Equality Act refer only to biological definitions, leading to guidance that effectively bans transgender individuals from using facilities aligned with their gender identity.

McCloud argues that the Supreme Court failed to consider the impact of its decision on trans people and denied her the opportunity to present evidence. She contends that this violates her right to a fair trial under Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

The Guardian has more.

How JK Rowling and other transphobes are forcing men to use women’s restrooms

One of the clear signs of bigotry is how its proponents do not understand the unintended consequences of their own irrational hatred. They need their “solutions” to their imaginary problems to be neat and easy to handle.

J. K. Rowling and the TERFs (trans-exclusionary radical feminists) celebrated their UK Supreme Court victory this week as a victory for women (i.e. cis women).

They clearly believe that this means that trans women will be excluded from women’s spaces, including bathrooms, in the future.

What they have not considered is the fact that they have now opened the doors of women’s bathrooms to men.

Indeed, if the British government follows up on this Supreme Court madness (gender reduced to “biological sex” at birth), trans men will be forced to either use the women’s room or break the law.

A trans man in the restroom

Imagine this scenario: A trans man (indistinguishable from a cis man) walks into a woman’s restroom to do their thing. Imagine one of the women in there alerting a male friend or the staff about this male incursion into female spaces. This may quickly escalate into something ugly.

Read the rest of this article over at Crossdreamers.

Photo: The transgender man Michael Hughes posted pictures of himself next to women entering cubicles and doing their makeup, documenting the absurdity of American bathroom laws.