My son is not old school trans, the type that suffered from extreme dysphoria and distress and was forced to seek mental and medical help to cope. He is part of the new generation of trans—the social justice “trans” warriors.
My son knows he is male. But he wants to be “trans” because he hates gender stereotypes and believes in “trans” as a social justice cause—and he doesn’t so much want to be a girl, as he wants to not be a man. He sees men as harmful to women and wants to protect them, but somehow in his mixed up mind he thinks becoming one, will help women. It’s sort of like the same logic that leads people to vegetarianism, not because they care about animals, but because they believe that growing and consuming meat causes harm to the environment. My son also claims to be a communist, despite the obvious (to me) fact that transitioning is a very capitalist idea.
He also doesn’t want to be straight. He’s laughed at us and said, with derision, “you are the straightest people I know”. To him, it’s the apex of privilege, and therefore loathsome to be heterosexual (he does not spare a thought for how he would have arrived on this earth if not for his heterosexual parents). He loves to immerse himself in gay culture, to be different and special. Unfortunately for him (in his opinion), he is straight, not same-sex attracted.
Where did these crazy ideological beliefs come from? Who is telling kids if you feel awkward or lonely you’re probably trans because straight people are oppressors? To be honest, I’m not sure. They didn’t come from me and his father. His public school, maybe? And/or the internet from the social influencers he allows permanent and incessant access to his brain? Being on the autism spectrum made him more susceptible to all of this, that’s one thing I know for sure. Trans gives him a cause, and a place to fit in. My nerdy boy loved playing video games. He had very few friends, but those he had, unlike him, eventually moved on. They outgrew the games and started doing real life engagements, and my son was left behind. His new passion has created friendships he didn’t have before, and that’s precious to my lonely boy.
So, he latched on to “trans”. It was his fresh start. He could become a new person, just like a video game avatar. We never bought it, but the rest of the world was happy to celebrate the trans-ness of our 6”2’ masculine son. Now he lives to play the part, and to make trans social justice warrior his job title.
Why is society allowing and celebrating this sort of hijacking of young lives, and an activist career and cause that leads to body harm and mutilation? Can’t everyone see that this new breed of trans is something different entirely from the transsexualism of the past? That it is a civil rights movement rooted in social contagion of a teenage Discord fad?
Maybe the world will wake up soon and see this movement for what it is and, instead of cheering for my trans social justice activist, the world will start rolling its eyes. But how many young people who eagerly joined in will have suffered irreversible physical and mental damage in the meantime? And will my “trans” social justice warrior be one of them?
