BROADview in Brief

On Point!

Hey, guess what? Actual journalism happened this week! WBUR’s On Point put out two podcasts: a 60-minute full interview with Dr. Hilary Cass, and a shorter show that incorporates the voices of American gender clinicians Dr. Laura Edwards-Leeper and Dr. Amy Tishelman. Host Meghna Chakrabarti got into the weeds with Cass about how it is that so many in the American affirmative camp can keep cooing “evidence-based” and “lifesaving” when Cass’s team found “remarkably weak evidence” and that “we have no good evidence on the long-term outcomes of interventions to manage gender-related distress.”

I think this kind of reporting will help those who’ve accepted activist talking points—which have been embedded in medical associations, education, and the mass media—to see that the story is far more complicated than they knew.

This, of course, is what we’ve needed all along, and what I’ve been trying to do since I first told my editors at a major news publication in 2017 that I thought we had the story wrong. (“You’re probably right,” they said, “but there’s not really anything we can do about it.) All we need is to stop presenting the issue as political, framing it as left/right, good/bad, and take objections seriously. Then people can start to make up their own minds.

Sadly, the medical associations are still digging in. The AAP sent On Point a short statement:

The Endocrine Society, at least, wrote out a couple of pages of response. But the opening two sentences say it all:

“We stand firm in our support of gender-affirming care. Transgender and gender-diverse people deserveaccess to needed and often life-saving medical care.

 NHS England’s recent report, the Cass Review, does not contain any new research that would contradict the recommendations made in ourClinical Practice Guideline on gender-affirming care.”

The activist/journalist crowd continues to try to discredit the report, to frame it as scientifically flawed or politically motivated. They’ve had a stranglehold on the media for years now, but the Cass Review has provided our first glimmer of hope: the door to accurate reporting is now the slightest bit ajar. (Although wait until next week, when another reporter and I tell you about our recent media training experience!)

And now, an exhaustive list of what’s been going on, courtesy of Alejandra Q!

National

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed a law that will mandate staff to notify parents when a student changes their name or pronouns in school. The bill also provides parents with a path for civil action against those schools that fail to comply.

Following a 27-8 vote, the South Carolina Senate approved a bill Thursday that will ban pediatric gender transition and require schools to alert parents if their child requests to change their name or pronouns. Democratic legislators attempted to leave the sessions early, but the vote was called quickly. The bill, which passed the South Carolina House in January, will also bar individuals from using Medicaid to cover “gender-affirming” interventions.

The Mississippi Legislature revived bill that would grant access to bathrooms, locker rooms, and dormitories in the state’s public education buildings based on sex rather than gender identity. The proposal was pushed through the House and Senate during the last days of the legislature’s four-month session.

In an update from last week’s West Virginia case, Harrison County Judge Thomas Bedell granted a temporary injunction to the five Lincoln Middle School female athletes who refused to compete against trans-identified male student, Becky Pepper-Jackson. This decision means that school officials will be prevented from barring the girls from further track meets. On April 18, the girls had silently protested Pepper-Jackson’s participation by pulling from a track and field competition.

The Rhode Island state Senate passed the Healthcare Provider Shield Act Thursday. The proposed legislature would protect healthcare workers who provide transgender care and abortion services from arrest, extradition, subpoenas, and professional disciplinary action by other states or their residents. The legislation will now head to the House. Rhode Island would join 12 other states with similar shield laws if the bill is enacted.

John Dougall, a Utah auditor, publicly complained that a tip line managed by his office has been flooded with fake reports from transgender activists. Dougall’s office had been tasked with ensuring that schools and agencies were in compliance with the state’s “Sex-based Designations for Privacy, Anti-bullying and Women’s Opportunities” law that went into effect May 1st. Dougall’s tip line, which was mean to keep track of reports of individuals accessing bathrooms that misalign with their sex, has since been swarmed with more than 4,000 hoax complaints.

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody sued the Biden administration after the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services new rules expanded protections against sex discrimination to include gender identity. According to the Florida lawsuit, the new rules will force doctors to provide “gender affirming” interventions to both minors and adults even if this is against their medical or ethical judgement.

Sadie Schreiner, a trans-identified male track runner, wan 3 women events at the Liberty League championship. Schreiner, a student at the Rochester Institute of Technology, won the 400 meters with a time of 55.07 and the 200 meters at 24.14, setting new school records in the women's category for both events and a new women’s record for the Liberty League 200-meter time (Schreiner had also set a women's school record in the 300 meters earlier in the season). Schreiner also participated as an anchor leg of the 4x400 which wan by nearly three seconds. Schreiner does not believe that males have an automatic advantage in sport writing, "Out of all the hate that’s been shared of me ‘cheater’ is the most common word used… In my eyes, the discussion of trans inclusion in athletics shouldn’t even be a debate…As more research is done the more evident this becomes. There’s a reason I’m only as fast as I was in middle school, and the only variable that’s changed over my 9 years of running is my medication…" Riley Gaines reacted on X to Schreiner’s recent victory: "Sadie (Camden) Schreiner's time in the 200m makes him the 3rd fastest D3 collegiate runner in the nation in the women's category. For perspective, his time ranks him 1,619th in his rightful category of the men's division."

A new book Detrans: True Stories of Escaping the Gender Ideology Cult by Daily Signal reporter Mary Margaret Olohan is set to be released in June. The book describes the influence of doctors who grant access puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and “gender-affirming” surgeries and their subsequent disregard of patients experiencing regrets. Olohan spoke to The Hill about her upcoming book.

Following the recent changes to Title IX, The Independent Council on Women’s Sports (ICONS) filed a brief to the United Nations underscoring the physical and psychological stress experience by girls when forced to compete against men in athletic events. The letter was submitted to United Nations special rapporteur Reem Alsalem.

International

A group of thousands of protestors backed by the French left-wing party (La France Insoumise) and the French Socialist Party, gathered across different French cities this past week. The group marched against what they perceive to be an “offensive” on transgender rights centering around two specific issues: the 340-page report that was compiled last March by center-right Les Républicains Senators (“La Transidentification des Mineurs”) and the release of the new book by Dora Moutot and Marguerite Stern titled Transmania. It promotes itself as an “investigation into the abuses of transgender identity” that warns its readers “against the excesses of this ideology.” Some outlets report that Moutot, a feminist activist, has received death threats over the book’s publication, with J.K. Rowling offering her moral support via social media. There are different videos of the protests, including some that display the violent threats against Moutot and Stern. 

In a piece for Dutch News, journalist Jan Kuitenbrouwer and sociologist Peter Vasterman discuss the findings of the Cass review as they relate to the Dutch protocol and a potential audit. Kuitenbrouwer and Vasterman argue: “So it is high time for an ‘audit’, not of the scientific evidence base—which is now available—but of the actual clinical practice. What are the decision-making processes in the consulting rooms, and which considerations are used to decide on treatment? In addition, based on the records of the thousands of patients treated until now, research should be conducted into the long-term effects.”

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith claims that the Cass review will help inform the development of transgender policies for her government. In an interview with the National Post, Smith stated that she recently spoke with Dr Cass about the review’s findings, which led Smith to conclude that “If we want to take a science-based approach, we’ve got to use the best information available.”

A new English legislation will require that restaurants, offices and hospitals provide separate single sex bathrooms. The new building regulations follow a consultation of the proposals which found that 81% of responders agreed with the prospect for separate single-sex toilet facilities while 82% agreed with the prospect universal toilets (a fully enclosed toilet room with a basin for individual use) for venues where there is sufficient space. According to government ministers, the new law will address “privacy and dignity” concerns in gender-neutral facilities.

While providing evidence to Holyrood's Health, Social Care and Sport Committee, Dr Hilary Cass told Scottish MSPs about the need for a more "holistic" approach for young people’s receiving gender services. As reported previously, NHS Scotland’s only gender clinic halted the prescription puberty blockers to minors soon after the publication of the Cass review. Scottish government has also acknowledged that it was considering the review's findings. Meanwhile, the co-leader of the Scottish Greens, Patrick Harvie, stated that his party rejected the Holyrood motion and failed to recognize the Cass Review as a “valid scientific document.” While other Scottish parties, including the SNP, endorsed the Holyrood report, Harvie promised that the Scottish Greens will continue “oppose the toxic culture war” even if “left alone in Scottish politics” on their stance for transgender rights.

Deta Hedman, a world-famous British darts player and three-time WDF World Championship finalist, forfeited the Denmark Open after refusing to play against trans-identified Noa-Lynn van Leuven. Hedman was supposed to face off against Van Leuven on Saturday for the quarter-finals. Following Hedman's withdrawal, van Leuven will now automatically advance to the semi-finals. While Hedman had been critical of policies that allow trans-identified males to participate in in women's competitions in the past, there had been speculation that the 64-year-old had withdrawn due to illness. Hedman set the record straight, however, confirming that she withdrew from the competition to protest van Leuven’s participation, writing: "For many months I've struggled with transgenders playing in the Women's world ranked events. I have thought this is wrong since day one, I have no problem with transgenders in life.” On related headlines, Riley Gaines offered to refund Hedman the prize money from the Denmark Open while pool player Lynne Pinches has praised Hedman for her decision to refuse to compete against van Leuven.

US

May 2: What Is ‘Queer Food’? A Conference Explores (and Tastes) Some Answers.—At Boston University, scholars, students and writers gathered to share thoughts on the role of gender and sexuality in the food space. Snacks were plentiful. (The New York Times)

May 4: Austin City Council passes transgender protections “Members of the Austin City Council voted Thursday afternoon to approve offering some protections to local transgender people seeking gender-affirming care, though it may lead to more pushback by Texas Republican lawmakers.” (WTNH)

May 4: Shocking moment 'transgender' student drags girl out of NY school bathroom by hair during brawl, with clip prompting bomb threat that closed school (The Daily Mail)

May 5: Ohio’s gender-affirming care ban for minors prompts similar calls in Michigan (The Detroit News)

May 5: Ugh: PBS Hails ‘Gender-Affirming Care’ Court Win for Minors, Including Mastectomy “PBS teamed up with its fellow taxpayer-funded outlet National Public Radio to bring the joyful news that a federal appellate court in Richmond had ruled that so-called “gender-affirming care” must be covered by state health care plans in West Virginia and North Carolina. They used that Orwellian term no less than ten times in the segment. including in the supportive introduction from host Amna Nawaz: ‘A federal appeals court issued a groundbreaking ruling last night ensuring that gender-affirming surgery is covered by state-run health insurance programs.’” (MRC NewsBusters)

May 5: New York Public School passes an anti-transgender sports resolution “Community Education Council District 2 of New York City, one of the largest school districts in the city, had a contentious meeting after passing (8-3) an anti-transgender sports policy titled Resolution #248 on March 20, 2024. As a result Chase Strangio, CEC District 2 parent, Deputy Director for Transgender Justice, and staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), organized LGBTQ activists throughout New York City to show up in support of two-spirit, trans, nonbinary and gender nonconforming students. Strangio encouraged people to ‘pay attention’ to decision-making bodies. He also brought understanding to the ways civil rights law doesn’t unfurl under ‘debate.’” (Out in Jersey)

May 6: Transgender bathroom bills are back, gaining traction after past boycotts “In 2016, North Carolina passed the country's first bathroom bill — a law saying people have to use the bathroom matching the sex on their birth certificate. There was huge pushback, boycotts of the entire state. The political fallout led to the downfall of Republican Gov. Pat McCrory.” (NPR)

May 6: Trone discusses transgender niece—Blade interviewed MD congressman, Angela Alsobrooks last week “Maryland Congressman David Trone last week discussed his transgender niece during an interview with the Washington Blade about his U.S. Senate campaign.” (Washington Blade)

May 6: Rutgers to award honorary doctorate to pioneering transgender U.S. official “Rutgers University is awarding an honorary degree to the nation’s first openly transgender federal official confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Admiral Rachel L. Levine has led the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps since 2021 and is the assistant secretary for health for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.” (NJ.com)

May 6: That shame you're feeling is not yours; it's theirs: In Northampton, Elliot Page embraces trans community—The actor participated in a 'fireside chat' Sunday with Transhealth president and CEO Dallas Ducar (The Boston Globe)

May 6: Inside Denver’s only micro-community for transgender, previously homeless people (Rocky Mountain PBS)

May 7: School-Transgender Student-Lawsuit-Maine (Lufkin Daily News)

May 7: Washington National Opera Launches Award for Nonbinary and Transgender Singers “On May 1st, the Washington National Opera (WNO) recognized the tenor Katherine Goforth as the recipient of their inaugural award for transgender and nonbinary singers. Goforth will receive career training and mentorship as a part-time member of the Cafritz Young Artists program. She also took part in a performance at the Kennedy Center.” (Ludwigvan)

May 7: Ex-Worker Sues Fla. Krispy Kreme Over Transgender Status (Law UK)

May 7: Ballot Proposal Wants Schools to Notify Parents of Signs Their Kid Is Transgender—A new law just started requiring Colorado public schools to refer to students by their chosen names. (Westword)

May 7: RFK Jr. pivots on gender-affirming care for minors, says treatment should be ‘deferred till adulthood’ “‘The more I learn, the more troubled I have become about giving puberty blockers to youth. Minors cannot drive, vote, join the army, get a tattoo, smoke, or drink, because we know that children do not fully understand the consequences of decisions with life-long ramifications,’ Kennedy wrote late Monday in a post on the social platform X.” (The Hill)

May 8: San Francisco Mayor Appoints Drag Queen to Head Office of Transgender Initiatives “San Francisco Mayor London Breed appointed drag performer “Honey Mahogany” as director of the city’s Office of Transgender Initiatives, which went into effect Monday.” (National Review)

May 8: Supreme Court poised to enter debate over transgender care for minors “After steering clear of the divisive issue for months, the Supreme Court may be on the verge of deciding whether to jump into the national debate over medical treatment for transgender youths. As soon as Thursday justices may vote behind closed doors on whether to grant an appeal that seeks to block a new Tennessee law prohibiting medical treatments that enable a ‘minor to identify with, or live as, a purported identity inconsistent with the minor’s sex.’” (LA Times)

May 8: Uncertainty in local schools as Louisiana sues feds over new rules on gender identity (Louisiana Illuminator)

May 8: Former prison guard: Male inmates 'absolutely' exploit transgender laws Former correctional officer Hector Bravo Ferrel described incidents of prisoners taking advantage of California’s protections for transgender inmates on OutKick's Gaines for Girls podcast. (Fox News) 

May 8: Over 20 GOP-led states sue Biden administration over Title IX rules for LGBTQ students “Attorneys general in Texas, Florida, Georgia and other state have sued the administration for expanding anti-discrimination protections to LGBTQ students. “Attorneys general in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia who sued the administration in separate lawsuits last week argued that the Biden administration’s update to the rules is illegal. The attorneys general contended that the Education Department has exceeded its authority in changing the regulation.  And this week seven other states — Arkansas, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota — agreed, joining the legal battle by filing two additional lawsuits.” (NBC News)

May 8: Judge rules Pine-Richland parent can't challenge school district's transgender policy “A Pine-Richland parent suing the school district over its transgender nondiscrimination policy does not have standing to do so because her child has not been affected by it, a federal judge has ruled. On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge William S. Stickman IV issued his 17-page opinion in the case, which was filed in January by a plaintiff using the pseudonym Jane Doe. Doe, who has a child in the North Hills district, said her child has not identified as transgender, but that she had recently found her child viewing videos online that included transgender people advocating for transitioning. Her child had also joined a new friend group that included transgender children. Those facts, Stickman wrote in his opinion, are not enough to challenge the district’s policy.” (Triblive)

May 8: Feds investigate another Texas school district for its gender identity mandate—Katy ISD’s board voted this past fall to require staff to notify parents if their child wants to use a different pronoun or identifies as a different gender. (Texas Tribune)

May 8: Supreme Court poised to decide whether to consider transgender medical treatment bans—Justices have delayed weighing transgender youth medical ban more than half a dozen times (The Washington Times)

May 8: Rochester Public Schools indicates it will solidify its guidelines regarding transgender students—The board will present a draft procedure on June 11, 2024, and then vote on it July 16. “After weeks of controversy about Rochester Public Schools' guidelines regarding transgender and gender-expansive students, the district has signaled it will write them into procedure, essentially solidifying its stance on the issue. School Board Chairwoman Cathy Nathan announced the decision Tuesday, May 8, after a series of community members came forward to speak about the topic - including an RPS counselor who shamed the district for ‘censoring’ her for her comments.” (Post Bulletin)

May 9: California surfing competition told to let transgender woman compete (BBC News)

May 9: Bridgeport student joins lawsuit against transgender student athletes “A Bridgeport High School track athlete has joined a national lawsuit against the Biden Administration’s new rules surrounding Title IX. The student, identified as A.C., said they were teammates with a transgender athlete at Bridgeport Middle School and claims the transgender athlete sexually harassed A.C. in the filing, which can be viewed here. Those claims are unproven at this time.” (WFTV)

May 9: South Carolina governor receives proposed ban on transgender treatments for minors (Just the News)

May 9: North Dakota policy, political rhetoric overlook transgender kids (North Dakota Monitor)

May 9: Moment trans athlete smashes the field leaving female competitors in the dust to win 400m race and secure place in Varsity finals in Portland today “Aayden Gallagher, who identifies as a girl, dominated in the Portland Interscholastic League Championship Semi-Finals on Wednesday.” (The Daily Mail)

Title IX updates

(As of last week, these were the states that had filed lawsuits against the T IX updates: Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi Montana, Alabama, Florida, Georgia and South Carolina, Texas Tennessee joined Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, West Virginia and Virginia.)

May 5: Conservative courts poised to block new transgender student protections (The Hill)

May 7: More GOP states challenge federal rules protecting transgender students “Seven more Republican-led states sued Tuesday to challenge a new federal regulation that seeks to protect the rights of transgender students in the nation’s schools. Republican plaintiffs call the effort to fold protection for transgender students under the 1972 Title IX law unconstitutional. The lawsuits filed in federal courts in Missouri and Oklahoma are the latest GOP attempts to halt the new regulation seeking to clarify Title IX, a landmark 1972 sex discrimination law originally passed to address women’s rights and applied to schools and colleges receiving federal money. The rules spell out that Title IX bars discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, too. Arkansas, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota joined as plaintiffs in the Missouri lawsuit.” (AP News)

May 7: Arkansas teen, attorney general file federal lawsuit over Title IX transgender protections “The 60-page lawsuit alleges the education department has exceeded its authority by rewriting the statute. It also claims the rule violates the First Amendment, is arbitrary and capricious by going against “decades” of understanding of Title IX and presents “an actual controversy” by redefining “sex” to include gender identity.”

May 7: Florida sues Biden administration over new transgender health care rule—The lawsuit takes aim at a new federal rule that would ban discrimination in health care on the basis of gender identity. (NBC News) 

May 7: Gov. Sanders issued an anti-trans executive order demanding schools Arkansas ignore federal guidance on Title IX (Metro Weekly)

May 7: Alexander: Louisiana is Justified in Defying New Biden Transgender Rules in Title IX (Minden Press Herald)

May 7: Iowa among GOP states challenging federal rules protecting transgender students (WIZM News)

May 7: New Title IX rules leave a gaping hole where transgender athletes stand—Tearing down the Trump administration’s Title IX policies was the bare minimum of what needed to be done to improve student protections. (The Highlander)

May 7: South Dakota Joins In Title IX Transgender Lawsuit (Yankton Daily Press & Dakotan)

May 8: Missouri among GOP states fighting federal rules protecting transgender students (St. Louis Post Dispatch)

International

Australia/New Zealand

May 2: Non-binary pupils up as teachers told to forgo ‘boys and girls’ (The Australian)

May 5: Whistleblower exposes Hobart City Council transgender rights cover-up (The Australian)

May 7: Transgender prisoner policy issued but not followed as Marjorie Harwood held in male prison seven times, documents show “On March 30, 2009, the Tasmania Prison Service (TPS) issued its first transgender prisoner protocol. It detailed how transgender prisoners would be managed as the gender with which they identified, and placed in the prison of their gender identification unless there were overriding security issues. Over the course of the next eight years, transgender woman Marjorie Harwood went to jail seven times – for shoplifting, bail breaches and other minor offences. But on each occasion, she was placed with the male prison population at Risdon Prison.” (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

May 8: Hunter Valley Grammar School sparks outrage over woke Mother's Day move “An elite private school has been accused of pushing 'woke ideology' after changing the name of its Mother's Day stall to 'Family Day'.” (The Daily Mail)

May 8: Sex, lies and the census “StatsNZ, the government’s official statistics agency, apparently thinks that humans can change sex. It tells us in its report on the new questions in the 2023 census that: ‘Sex is based on a person’s sex characteristics, such as their chromosomes, hormones, and reproductive organs. While typically based upon the sex characteristics observed and recorded at birth or infancy, a person’s sex can change over the course of their lifetime and may differ from their sex recorded at birth.’” (Open Inquiry)

May 9: Blind to autism—The Cass review picks up an Australian gender clinic not screening for autism (Gender Clinic News)

Canada

May 5: What does Quebec restricting gender-neutral bathrooms in public schools mean for students? “Quebec’s new rules banning the construction of shared gender-neutral bathrooms in public schools will have a “chilling effect” on the province’s transgender and non-binary students, according to a trans activist.” (City News Everywhere)

May 8: Canada’s dangerous commitment to trans-affirming care for minors: James Pew—Resources like the federally funded “Trans-Affirming Toolkit” send the wrong message to educators – and to impressionable and vulnerable children.

UK

May 1: Row at breastfeeding charity as regulators are called in amid bullying claims over call to let in trans women (The Daily Mail)

May 3: Judge warns over “dangerously high” hormone dose prescribed to teenager by online gender clinic “The judge who heads the High Court’s family division has warned of the risks of obtaining hormone prescriptions from online gender clinics, after an expert witness told the court that a teenager had received “dangerously high” amounts of testosterone. Giving judgment in the case of ‘J,’ to whom testosterone was prescribed at the age of 15, Andrew McFarlane said, ‘There must be very significant concern about the prospect of a young person such as J accessing cross-hormone treatment from any offshore, online, unregulated private clinic.’” (The BMJ)

May 5: Calls for cash-strapped councils to stop funding ‘harmful’ trans groups (The Sunday Post)

May 6: Fury over official trans and non-binary guidance to HR staff: Gender-critical campaigners slam 'impractical' advice that says refusing transgender women access to female-only toilets at work may be discrimination (The Daily Mail)

May 6: Scottish council to stop schools calling pupils boys and girls—Women’s-rights campaigner calls the latest development in school gender rules ‘dan­ger­ous claptrap’ not based on science

May 8: Public to have say on school trans guidance “A public consultation on a controversial council document advising schools on how to treat gender-questioning children is to be held later this year.”(Brighton and Hove News)

May 8: NHS bosses are to blame for failures in treating trans children, says Dr Hilary Cass—Paediatrician who led the review into gender services accuses trust leaders of ‘ducking their responsibility’ to young people in their care (The Telegraph)

May 9: DARE HE? My male rapist claimed to be a woman so cops, lawyers & judge all called him she – it’s unfair, only men can commit rape—Anna says the trauma has changed some of her fundamental characteristics (The Sun)

Other International

May 5: How Pope Francis opened the Vatican to transgender sex workers—The outreach, reflecting the most radical stage of his papacy, has prompted backlash while also altering the lives of the nearly 100 people he has met. (The Washington Post)

May 6: The Many Enemies Of Iraqi Transgender: The State, Islamists — And Some Feminists “With the increase of the tyranny of religious fundamentalism and its bureaucratic apparatus, we see related reactions spreading towards non-normative women. And among those who want to deny rights to trans women are certain feminist groups and activists.” (World Church) 

May 7: China’s first publicly recognised transgender woman divorces German husband – remarries him 18 years later “Jin becomes China’s first publicly recognised transgender woman following surgery in 1995. She then divorces husband out of necessity for children before remarrying.” (South China Morning Post)

May 9: 'Eunuch-maker' mutilator jailed for 22 years  “A self-styled ‘eunuch maker’ who mutilated paying customers and streamed it online has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 22 years. Marius Gustavson admitted offences including five counts of causing grievous bodily harm with intent. He was described at a three-day sentencing at the Old Bailey as ‘a lunatic’, ‘an arch-manipulator’ and ‘a butcher’. The Norwegian, 46, ran a lucrative business in extreme body modifications.” (BBC)

Opinion

May 1: I'm a woman doctor and we have to stop trans activists and their supporters in the NHS imposing their fantasy on everyone else's reality (The Daily Mail) 

May 3: GENDER OP HELL I had surgery to become a man but regretted it so I changed back to a woman five years later – now my body Is ruined—Sinead has been living in a homeless hostel for the past six months after the breakdown of a three-year relationship (The Sun)

May 4: As States Resist Federal Gender Rules, Schools Are Caught in the Middle—Conservative state governments are forbidding school districts from doing what the Department of Education says they must, under new Title IX regulations on students’ gender identity. “New civil rights regulations released last month by the Biden administration presented school districts across the nation with a clear choice: Either adopt policies that allow transgender students to use the bathrooms, wear the uniforms and be called by the pronouns that correspond with their gender identity, or risk losing federal funding. But several Republican-led states have responded with an equally clear message for their schools: Steer clear of such policies.” (The New York Times)

May 4: ‘Breastfeeding men’ is an Orwellian lie—Why is a breastfeeding charity letting blokes with useless, milk-less nipples use its services? (Spiked)

May 5: Schools that impose gender affirmation harm children, families, and society (X Article)

May 5: How Children Became Guinea Pigs—"We know from detransitioners — those who once identified as trans but now accept their sex — that the internet presents many dangers to unhappy, lonely children. This theme appears multiple times in the Cass report, the recent independent review commissioned by NHS England to investigate what went wrong with its main gender youth clinic.” (National Review)

May 6: Trigger warnings, mental health issues, transgender rights and knee-jerk cancel culture: Welcome to life on university campus in modern Britain, as revealed by anonymous academic 'The Secret Lecturer' (The Daily Mail)

May 6: Challenges for Transgender Patients: Thoughts From the AMA President “Jesse M. Ehrenfeld, MD, MPH, shared with attendees of the 2024 American Psychiatric Association Annual Meeting that patients do not mind questions about gender and sexuality in a health care setting. In fact, he believes it is crucial to ask. Pushing legislators out of the exam room is paramount, he shared, as any breech of patient physician autonomy must be pushed back. Dr Ehrenfeld is the president of the American Medical Association.” (Psychiatric Times)

May 7: 'I had to choose': Mom describes accepting transgender daughter “Meghan Cortez-Fields is a transgender swimmer and has been swimming all her life. Her mom shares an emotional conversation as she recalls her journey of acceptance.” (CNN)

May 8: 21 Areas of Disagreement Between Transgender Activism and Feminism “In a world where gender politics flood our feeds, navigating the tides between transgender rights and feminist movements is no small feat. For the liberal-minded among us, this intersection poses intriguing questions: How do we champion inclusivity while safeguarding the rights of women? It’s a delicate dance on the tightrope of progress, where every step matters. Let’s explore the nuanced disagreements that add layers to our understanding of gender, rights, and equality.” (MSM News, originally from Love List)

May 8: NHS bosses are to blame for failures in treating trans children, says Dr Hilary Cass—Paediatrician who led the review into gender services accuses trust leaders of ‘ducking their responsibility’ to young people in their care (The Telegraph)

May 8: What Does Quality of Evidence Mean?—Gender clinician Jack Turban misunderstands key concepts in evidence-based medicine. (City Journal)

May 8: Hilary Cass: “Do I regret doing it? Absolutely not”—The Cass Review author on facing her critics, and how children’s gender identity services failed to “pause for thought”. (The New Statesman)

May 8: Gender-Affirming Care Gave Me a Life I Love. Why Do Pundits See It as a Tragedy?—Why are trans voices like mine minimized in the “debate” around our own health care? “Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody is suing the Biden administration over gender affirming care for minors. This comes after the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services put out a new rule that would ban discrimination in healthcare based on gender identity. In the lawsuit, Moody said the new rule would force doctors to provide treatments like drugs, hormones therapy and surgeries for transgender minors and adults against their medical or ethical judgment.” (TruthOut)

May 9: Fatal Flaws In the IOC Sponsored Research Study on Transgender Athletes—On every relevant metric, the comparison groups were vastly disparate, akin to comparing apples to oranges. (Reality’s Last Stand)