BROADview in Brief

Can you say Kafkaesque?

Photo by Jorge Franganillo on Unsplash

This week, I’d like to call attention to the disinformation spreaders who are accepted and promoted by mainstream media and advocacy groups as soothsayers. (How many times have you used “Kafkaesque” when describing this issue?)

For instance, The Nation profiled Erin Reed and Evan Urquhart as heroes combatting “the mainstream media’s failures to report fairly on trans issues.” I mean, we’re in agreement that the media has failed to report fairly. But these writers want their distortions accepted as fact, and I want a full and complex story told, with the “other sides” taken seriously instead of presented as bigotry.

Reed, in particular, has been distorting the findings of the Cass Review, convincing followers and media members that it ignored evidence or is ideologically driven. Cass herself called out “some of the assertions being made on social media, and occasionally on mainstream broadcast media, which misrepresent the report and its findings, whether wilfully or otherwise. Whilst some commentators have tried to debunk these misrepresentations, we live in a world where misinformation, when left unchallenged, becomes part of an accepted narrative regardless of its validity.”

Alejandra Q noted that:

“In an interview with The London Times, renowned pediatrician Dr Hilary Cass states that she is not currently using public transportation based on security advice. However, Dr Cass says, ‘I’m much, much more upset and frustrated about all this disinformation than I am about the abuse. The thing that makes me seethe is the misinformation.’ Such misinformation includes a statement from Labour MP Dawn Butler that the Cass review had not included 100 transgender studies. This stems from rumors by Harvard-affiliated American attorney and transgender activist, Alejandra Caraballo, who was the first to claim that the Cass review had “disregarded nearly all studies” for not being double-blind controlled ones. Caraballo’s allegation, posted on X one day before the review was released, included a screen shot from the 2020 NICE reviews instead of the new systematic reviews that were released along with the Cass review. Also worth noting is that, unlike Caraballo, MP Butler has retracted her statements against the Cass review.”

Despite Ben Ryan’s comprehensive fact checks of Reed, that narrative remains “the truth” for some.

The Cass Review is the most thorough, scientific, and reasonable document we have so far. Even the UN endorsed it. It reveals the truth: we have absolutely no idea who will benefit from or be harmed by these interventions, and the vitriolic “no debate” team have made it even harder to figure that out. Kids don’t “know themselves.” Like the rest of us, they are engaged in a lifelong process of self-discovery, as long as someone is not making meaning of their differences or distress and foreclosing that possibility of evolution. I was delighted to see both opinion pieces and reported pieces in The New York Times, Washington Post, Boston Globe and others. But in addition to getting more coverage of this document, we have to make it clear to the media that the people they’re platforming as “experts” distort the truth, rather than speak it.

In other news…trouble at New Hampshire’s Diaper Spa. I am thinking a lot about the role of stigma in society, and what it means to normalize fetishes. Please share your thoughts.

Now to summaries and headlines from the indefatigable Alejandra Q:

Summaries:

US

Maine Governor Janet Mills signed a bill into law which will shield providers of pediatric gender affirming interventions and reproductive health. The bill was strongly opposed by Republican state lawmakers. Critics of the new bill fear that it will allow for minors to be kidnapped or trafficked across state lines, with 16 attorneys general from different states having signed a letter threatening litigation against the new law.

The New Hampshire House Education Committee voted Tuesday to send SB 375 to interim study following hours of testimony. The move means that the bill will now go on the consent calendar when going to the full House, which will very likely kill the bill. SB 375 would have precluded trans-identified students from participating in sports based on gender identity.

The Oklahoma Senate passed House Bill 1449 (also known as the “Women’s Bill of Rights”) Tuesday, a bill which legally defines the word “woman” based on biological sex. According to the bill’s main author, Sen. Jessica Garvin, “The Women’s Bill of Rights will protect Oklahoma women at a time when the Biden administration continues to push its deeply flawed gender ideology.” In other Oklahoma news, a lawsuit challenging a state bill was appealed after having been dismissed by an Oklahoma City federal court. The lawsuit was filed in 2022 by the families of 3 trans-identified students against the State’s Department of Education and seeks to overturn SB 615, which restricts access to school restrooms based on biological sex. The families claimed the bill violated Title IX. 

The ACLU filed a lawsuit Tuesday on behalf of a Tennessee trans-identified male (referred to in the lawsuit as “Jane Doe”) against the state’s Department of Safety and Homeland Security. This follows the department’s refusal to change the sex designation for the individual’s driver’s license. According to the lawsuit, the department acted against the state's Uniform Administrative Procedures Act. Similarly, the ACLU of Montana filed a class action lawsuit challenging state policies restricting sex marker changes for birth certificates and driver's licenses. The trans-identified plaintiffs argue that these state policies violate their constitutional rights to privacy and equal protection under the law.

A Sacramento County Superior Court ruled in favor of Attorney General Rob Bonta’s title “Restricts Rights of Transgender Youth” for a proposed ballot initiative, rejecting its original name (“Protect Kids of California Act”). The proposed ballot initiative, launched by the group Protect Kids California, aims to require parental notification of transgender identity in schools, ban pediatric gender transition and restrict access to sports based on sex.

Following an investigation by the FBI and the Montgomery County Police Department, Maryland teenager Andrea Ye was arrested for allegedly planning a mass shooting. Ye, who identifies as transgender and goes by “Alex,” faces up to 10 years in prison after allegedly sharing a 129-page manifesto depicting violent school attacks. Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich reprimanded a reporter on Friday for asking about Ye’s gender identity: “Why you focus on them being transgender is beyond me. It is not a news story. It is not a crime to be transgender and I’m sorry you feel that way.”

A video circulated on social media of a student from Pennbrook Middle School in Pennsylvania. In the video, the young girl describes an attack against another female student by a 13-year-old trans-identified male student. According to the girl’s testimony, the female victim was beaten repeatedly in the head with a Stanley cup and was subsequently hospitalized. This happened despite the witnessing student’s earlier warnings to administrators of the potential for a similar event involving the trans-identified male. Shortly before the violent occurrence, administrators had allegedly assured the worried student of her and her school peer’s safety. The same trans-identified male student allegedly attacked sheriff deputies during a Monday hearing when a judge ruled that the student be held at the Montgomery County Youth Detention Center. 

Becky Pepper-Jackson, the track and cross country runner at the center of West Virginia’s recent ruling, competed in a sporting event against female athletes this week. Five girls who were meant to compete stepped up to the circle for their turn but refused to throw the ball in protest of Pepper-Jackson’s participation (one of the protesting middle school athletes spoke to Riley Gaines on Wednesday). Pepper-Jackson won first place in the shotput competition and second in discus. Addressing the same case, MetroNews writes about the many questions that still surround last week’s federal appeals panel’s ruling; while the panel ruled in favor of Pepper-Jackson, the same panel did not fully invalidate the state’s law. This leaves school districts and teams in an uncertain position regarding other trans-identified athletes. West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey says that the state plans to appeal last week’s U.S. Circuit of Appeals court ruling.

Planned Parenthood has refused to provide a clinic’s records on pediatric gender affirming procedures despite last weeks’ ruling by Judge Michael Stelzer, who ordered that they be turned over to Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey. Missouri’s Merchandising Practices Act allows for the Attorney General to obtain these patient documents because they exclude records protected by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Planned Parenthood has appealed Judge Stelzer’s ruling claiming that the demand was "improperly issued in reliance" of the merchandising act.

LGBTQ sports advocacy group Athlete Ally sent a letter to the NCAA urging the group to allow trans-identified males to compete in women’s sports. Signatories include 400 current and former athletes and over 300 academics. Among the famous athletes to sign this letter are Megan Rapinoe, Sue Bird, and R.K. Russell. Other advocacy groups also released their own letters.

International

Libby Mettam, the Liberal leader of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia, said that if they were to win the 2025 state election her party would ban the use of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones for gender distressed minors. In an interview with The West Australian, Mettam also spoke about her goal to commission a “comprehensive review” of pediatric gender transition. In a follow up interview, Mettam claimed that the UK’s Cass Review “should also be a warning bell for Australia.” She denied allegations that her viewpoint is “based on ideology,” stating that she had consulted with both detransitioners and medical experts to inform her views on the topic. In other Australian news, The Guardian reports that neither New South Wales nor Victoria have plans to change their approach to prescribing puberty blockers, with some Australian experts claiming that gender medicine there is based on “holistic and best-practice care.” In response to the Cass review, Victoria’s health minister Mary-Anne Thomas stated, “Our gender clinics offer some of the most vulnerable young people in our community the support they deserve – we’re fiercely proud of the important work they do.” Bernard Lane disagrees with the health minister’s position according to one of the latest articles for GCN: “Simply claiming that Australia’s ‘gender-affirming care’ is holistic doesn’t make it true. Even if a patient’s history is carefully noted and a multidisciplinary team is involved, it falls short of holistic care when a gender clinic offers only a narrow pathway of hormonal intervention. Genuine holistic care would mean best practice management of all relevant conditions, not just the gender distress presented as the key problem.”

Isla Bryson, a Scottish double rapist previously known as Adam Graham, claims to be the victim of a hate crime. Bryson has received apologies from the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) after having been "misgendered" and called "son" by a prison officer. According to Bryson, "I'm just dealing with transphobia from staff. I was told from a staff member in Edinburgh that the MSP has been telling governors to treat trans women that come into the SPS like men. It's disgusting and a hate crime."

A group of over 130 MPs, peers, doctors, and academics in the UK wrote to Prime Minster Rishi Sunak demanding a public inquiry into the role that transgender ideology has played in schools and the NHS. The request, which was covered in an article for The Telegraph, addresses the treatment of “confused and vulnerable” children and highlights how some schools “teach gender identity ideology to pupils as if it were fact, often to the exclusion or denial of biological reality.”

The International Olympic Committee commissioned a new study which concluded that trans-identified male athletes had greater handgrip strength but “lower jumping ability, lung function and relative cardiovascular fitness when compared to females.” One of the study’s authors Yannis Pitsiladis stated that, according to physiological differences, “Trans women are not biological men.” In a piece critical of the study UnHerd highlights the perspective of Cathy Devine, lecturer in sport and physical activity at the University of Cumbria, who wrote on X in relation to the study: “This study compared unfit, overweight trans women (males) to fit females.”

Headlines:

US

Apr 22: Planet Fitness hires new DEI-focused CEO amid controversy over transgender locker room policy—New Planet Fitness CEO Colleen Keating says DEI should be 'embedded in a company’s culture' (Fox News)

Apr 18: Why Nashville school shooting victims' families don't want the handwritten confession of killer Audrey Hale from ever being released “Families of the victims are trying to exert a copyright claim on the manifesto. They are opposed to the release of the 'dangerous and harmful' rantings. A year after the horror officials are still blocking the release of the documents.” (The Daily Mail)

Apr 19: Children's gender clinic whistleblower tells Dr Phil patients were begging 'to have breasts put back on' and bosses told medics to 'keep silent' on de-transitioners (The Daily Mail)

Apr 20: An overwhelming number of public speakers voiced support for the policy “Following calls for his resignation a Nevada education official had to defend his remarks, regarding the transgender community, within the time limit of two minutes. During a Friday meeting of the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) Board of Regents, public commenters rose to dispute statements made by Regent Patrick Boylan.” (KLAS News Nevada)

Apr 22: College President Demands Transgender Athletes Exit Women's Sports “Dr. Wayne D. Lewis Jr., president of Houghton University, advocated against biological males participating in female sports, emphasizing the importance of preserving the integrity of women's athletics.” (MSM, originally from State of the Union)

Apr 22: 'Not Fair Nor Safe': Ex-WNBA Player Says Transgender Athletes Have No Place In Women's Sports—“Val Whiting, a retired WNBA player, strongly criticized the increasing trend of transgender athletes participating in women's sports. This came after Dawn Staley, the head coach of South Carolina Gamecocks, expressed her support for the idea before a national championship game. (MSM, originally from Curious Historian)

Apr 22: W.Va. Gubernatorial Campaign Attack Ads Vilify Transgender Children—As the primary race for governor enters the home stretch, some candidate’s negative attack ads running endlessly on broadcast and social media target a minority group — transgender children. (West Virginia Public Broadcasting)

Apr 21: ‘Is Minneapolis good?’ How a Russian transgender refugee found hope in Minnesota — and a friend at the airport—He and his partner crossed the southern border seeking asylum. Only one made it this far. (Twin Cities)

Apr 21: Ohio’s HB 68 is a tale of political maneuvering, veto battles, and transgender rights: Leslie Kouba (Cleveland.com)

Apr 22: Titus defends bill banning access to gender-affirming care; says governor is framing a false narrative in her opposition “State lawmakers head back to Topeka later this week for veto session. Earlier this month, Gov. Laura Kelly announced a veto of Senate Bill 233, which would place limitations on gender-affirming care for minors, including access to surgery, hormone treatments and puberty blockers. In her veto statement, Gov. Kelly has said the bill was based on a politically distorted belief that the legislature knows better than parents how to raise their children. 51st District State Rep. Kenny Titus, of Manhattan says the governor has framed a false narrative regarding the proposed legislation.” (KMAN)

Apr 22: Legendary Announcer Pleads For 'Common Sense' With Transgender Athletes—“Longtime sports announcer Bob Costas has made his opinion on the matter pretty clear: he thinks common sense should be used. ‘It’s not transphobic to say ‘Let’s inject some common sense here,'’ Costas said during an interview with Bill Maher in February. ‘A lot of this is murky. We know that some people who use this as an issue actually are hostile towards trans people, or people who after carefully considered decisions at a certain point in life, decide that they’ll be happier and closer to their true selves- I think any sensitive person is aligned with that.’” (The Spun)

Apr 21: ARIZONA EDUCATION DEBATE INTENSIFIES OVER TRANSGENDER STUDENT BILL AMIDST BROADER SCHOOL FUNDING CONCERNS (hoodline)

Apr 21: Non-binary patient, 27, who underwent 'Barbie doll' op to remove all sexual organs reveals how they navigate life without genitals (The Daily Mail)

Apr 22: Seattle Children’s Hospital won’t have to provide trans patient records to Texas under new settlement—Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton suspected the hospital was helping Texas kids access puberty blockers or hormone treatments that are outlawed for juveniles.

Apr 19: Fort Worth cancelled an anti-transgender event at its community center, sparking free speech debate—City staff determined the event violated Park & Recreation Dept. policy, which states “community centers shall not be permitted to groups that discriminate." (FFAA)

Apr 20: MURRIETA SCHOOL BOARD REAFFIRMS SUPPORT FOR TRANSGENDER POLICY, DEFYING STATE RULING “In a 3-2 vote, the Murrieta Board of Education moved forward with a policy that requires schools notify a parent or guardian when a student chooses to be identified by a different gender. An overwhelming number of public speakers voiced support for the policy.” (ABC7 News, Los Angeles)

Apr 21: Plaintiffs in gender-affirming care lawsuit seek testimony from lawmakers about anti-LGBTQ bias “Plaintiffs in a lawsuit challenging North Dakota’s ban on gender-affirming medical care for minors seek to question two lawmakers about their motivation for sponsoring the legislation. Attorneys for Gender Justice, the advocacy group representing the plaintiffs, in March sought to order Rep. Bill Tveit, R-Hazen, and Rep. Brandon Prichard, R-Bismarck, to appear for depositions on April 5.” (The Dakotan)

Apr 22: NYC could oust school board members linked to transgender, pro-Palestinian backlash “New York City could soon remove local school board members who faced public backlash for their involvement in divisive education battles, from transgender student athletes to schools’ response to the war in Gaza.

Education officials on Wednesday started the disciplinary process for three members of Community Education Councils after formal complaints were filed against them, according to findings obtained by the Daily News. Those include Maud Maron, the lead sponsor last month of an anti-trans sports resolution, and Tajh Sutton, who helped organize a pro-Palestinian student walkout in November.” (Daily News)

Apr 19: Judge hears arguments over religious school’s ban from Vt. sports over transgender athlete dispute “An Upper Valley religious school faced off in federal court Friday with state and school officials in a dispute over the private school’s stance on transgender student-athletes. ‘We are here because the state of Vermont continues to discriminate against religious schools,’ said Jacob Reed, a lawyer representing Mid Vermont Christian, A religious school in White River Junction.” (WCAX3 Vermont)

Apr 22: Transgender sex offender is seen in creepy mugshot after trying to snatch young boy from elementary school “Solomon Galligan, 33, has been arrested for attempting to kidnap a young boy. The incident occurred at Black Forest Hills Elementary School in Aurora, CO” (The Daily Mail)

Apr 19: California's first transgender mayor Raul Ureña is kicked out of office after opponents mount 'transphobic' recall campaign (The Daily Mail)

Apr 23: More than 90 percent of transgender teens live in states that have proposed or passed anti-trans laws: Report (The Hill)

Apr 23: Transgender Louisianans lost their ally in the governor's seat. Now they're girding for a fight—Unlike recent years when there was an LGBTQ+ ally in the Louisiana governor's office, nothing stands in the way this year of legislation hostile to transgender people (AJC News)

Apr 22: Florida files to appeal a pronoun ruling for a transgender teacher “Lawyers for state education officials on Thursday filed a notice that they will appeal a court ruling that blocked enforcement of a 2023 law requiring a transgender teacher to use pronouns that align with her sex assigned at birth. The 2023 law restricts educators’ use of personal pronouns and titles in schools.” (WFSU)

Title IX

Apr 19: Biden Administration Releases Revised Title IX Rules—The new regulations extended legal protections to L.G.B.T.Q. students and rolled back several policies set under the Trump administration. (The New York Times)

Apr 22: Louisiana’s Superintendent of Education decries new Title IX rules “The Title IX rule changes recklessly endanger students and seek to dismantle equal opportunities for females” (Los Angeles Blade)

Apr 20: Updated Biden administration rules will soon affect students across US: What to know (USA Today)

Apr 22: Louisiana education chief tells schools to ignore new Title IX rules for transgender students(The Hill)

Apr 19: Biden’s new Title IX rules protect LGBTQ+ students, but avoid addressing transgender athletes (AP News)

Apr 23: New federal rule bars transgender school bathroom bans, but it likely isn't the final word—A new federal rule seeks to clarify that a law against sex discrimination at schools includes gender identity, too (Goskagit)

International

Australia and New Zealand

Apr 22: Butler did it—Australia's health minister has relied on a discredited report to kill off talk of a gender clinic inquiry “Australia’s Health Minister Mark Butler has a track record of dismissing calls for an inquiry into gender clinics by relying on the opinion of a medical association which suppressed expert concerns about hormonal treatment of minors. Endocrinologists, the key experts for the life-altering hormonal interventions used by gender clinics, had cited a lack of evidence for the claim that puberty blockers are reversible, but this warning never reached the federal government.”

Apr 18: Oranga Tamariki may intervene in cases where families resist child’s gender transition to protect “emotional wellbeing” “In brief: Oranga Tamariki may intervene over children’s “emotional wellbeing” concerns, not just physical safety, amid parental resistance to gender transition. They say “emotional harm” may result from broadly defined “serious differences” within families leading to disagreements over a child’s gender identity. Given that children commonly outgrow desires to transition, low thresholds seemingly give officials considerable discretion to decide what may warrant intervention.” (Centrist) NOTE: Oranga Tamariki is the name for the Ministry for Children in New Zealand

Canada

Apr 20: Barbara Kay: CBC doubles down on unscientific youth transgender care in wake of Cass Review—Memo to the CBC and the government: the medicalized transition bubble has burst (National Post)

Apr 22: Service’s First Openly Transgender Military Chaplain Suspended for Sexual Misconduct: Report “Canada’s Department of National Defence has suspended Capt. Beatrice Gale, who was lauded only weeks ago as “the Canadian Armed Forces’ (CAF) first openly transgender chaplain” on an official Canadian government website, reportedly asked if he could grope a fellow soldier, according to True North News.” (Independent Journal Review)

UK

Apr 21: Our child socially transitioned at school - now, we're too scared to challenge her—Teachers said an official name change would silence our teenager's bullies, but now we feel trapped by the gender ideology cult (The Telegraph)

Apr 22: Transgender activism position has potential to bring Humza Yousaf down - Brian Monteith—First Minister needs to distance himself from Greens and help our children if he wants to survive (The Scotsman)

Apr 23: Scottish children’s charity calls puberty blockers ‘wonderful’—Controversial LGBT Youth Scotland doubles down on its trans ideology despite Cass Review (The Telegraph)

Apr 23: From Suing to Defending: The UK Council for Psychotherapy “Up until a few months ago, I was embroiled in litigation against my former regulatory body, the United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP). Now, in one of life’s strange twists of fate, I find myself defending them.” (James Esses Substack)

Apr 21: NSPCC whistleblower quits charity over trans grooming row The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (The Telegraph)

NOTE: The NSPCC is The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children

Apr 23: The truth about Stonewall is finally being exposed—The organisation sought to shut down debate and pose as the real ‘experts’. Now its credibility has crumbled (The Telegraph)

Apr 22: Shadow justice secretary agrees with JK Rowling over gender critical views—Shabana Mahmood says author should not be stigmatised for standing up for what she rightly believes in (The Telegraph)

Apr 19: Transgender runner who outraged many by entering last year's London Marathon as a woman won't list herself as female when she runs again on Sunday (The Daily Mail)

Apr 22: ACE defends Funding for transgender show—Arts Council England stands by decision to fund a show about a transgender artist's search for a sperm donor with more than £60,000 of public money. (Arts Professional)

Apr 22: Transgender inclusion in football 'up to sporting bodies', says Sir Keir Starmer—Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer has urged sport chiefs to ban transgender athletes from elite women's sporting events (Sky News)

Apr 18: Library staff who were criticised for hosting a pro-trans exhibition - accused of glorifying body mutilation and self-harm - are organising a petition after action was taken to stop them promoting the cause “Workers at the Millennium Library in Norwich, Norfolk, are said to be in a rebellious mood after they were admonished by the county council leader for approving the event, which provoked a public backlash.” (The Daily Mail)

Apr 18: Chelsea's LGBTQ supporters group hit out at 'transphobic' ex-player after their former striker Eni Aluko shared a JK Rowling post about 'allowing mediocre males into women's sport'“Chelsea's LGBTQ supporters group have hit out at Eni Aluko for 'sharing transphobic posts' after she retweeted a JK Rowling post about 'allowing mediocre males into women's sport'.”(The Daily Mail)

Other countries

Apr 21: In Japan, US book on transgender surgery for young people sparks threats, heated debate “The furore started after a conservative newspaper released a translated version of ‘Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters.’ Sankei, the newspaper that published US journalist Abigail Shrier’s book, called the ‘outrageous’ backlash an attempt to stifle free speech in Japan.” (This Week in Asia)

Apr 21: Transgender Thai beauty queens shock army by turning up for military draft, striking good looks stun social media “Military service in Thailand is compulsory for men aged 21. Gender reassignment proof needed to exempt transgender women.” (South China Morning Post)

Apr 22: How Sweden fell again for transgender madness “When it comes to the transgender issue, Sweden sobered up earlier than many other countries. That was as far as the sobering up went. Last week though the Swedish parliament, the Riksdag, voted for a new law which makes it easier to change your legal gender. The law applies to children as young as 16, as long as they have parental permission. Above all, adults will be able to change their legal gender more easily, unlike today, when the required medical and governmental approval can take years.” (The Spectator)

Apr 22: Transgender darts star produces incredible comeback to win second women's title—Noa-Lynn van Leuven came from behind to secure an impressive win over the weekend. (Express)

Apr 22: Missing the ‘miss’: Chavit Singson thumbs down transgender participation in Miss Universe (Bilyonairo)

Apr 15: „Lebenslange Eingriffe“ – Eltern verlangen Stopp von Behandlungsleitlinie für Trans-Kinder(“Lifelong interventions” – Parents demand a stop to treatment guidelines for trans children, GESUNDHEIT)

Opinion Pieces

Apr 23: Vatican Deprives Transgender People Means of Survival, Writes Theologian; More News “Ursula Wollasch, a German Catholic theologian and former diocesan pastoral contact person for the trans community, critiqued the declaration as depriving trans people ‘of the medical, social and pastoral infrastructure that they need to live and survive.’”

Apr 21: We are ashamed of the role psychology played in gender care—Sixteen senior psychologists reveal how their profession failed young people at Gender Identity Development Service clinics (The Guardian)

Apr 23: In depth: Transgender athletes and sporting 'integrity' - lawyers divided “The controversial topic of transgender participation in women’s sport was discussed at the recent LawAccord conference. Speakers were – perhaps unsurprisingly – deeply divided on next steps.” (The Law Society Gazette)

Apr 23: Uncritical affirmation traps gender confused children into a ideological straitjacket—Psychology and psychiatry share the blame for the harms caused by gender medicine “One of the open questions raised by the Cass Review into gender medicine in England is how much blame for the harms done to gender confused children and their families should be borne by psychology versus medicine.” (X Article)

Apr 22: Medicine shuns gender detransitioners like me — but we deserve to be heard and helped (The New York Post)

Apr 24: ‘Social manias die quietly’—Lionel Shriver on why elites are rarely held accountable for their most damaging mistakes. (Spiked)

Apr 22: Transgender Meds for Kids? 4 Findings from New Report (The Gospel Coalition)

Apr 22: Claims Transgender at Risk of Suicide, False: Evolutionary Biologist “The Biden Administration has changed Title IX, the law that protects against discrimination based on sex in schools. NTD spoke with an evolutionary biologist about the new rules that could lead to biological males playing on women’s sports teams.” (NTD)

Apr 20: Opinion | Why I wouldn't want to compete against transgender women (The Cap Times)

Apr 19: The NCAA transgender policy, explained—It's obviously been a controversial issue. (WGTC)

Cass Follow up

Apr 23: Apr Patrick Harvie faces vote of no confidence over comments on Cass review on gender identity services—Ash Regan, Alba's sole MSP, must hope 25 other members at Holyrood support her motion or it will not proceed to a vote. “Patrick Harvie faces a potential vote of no confidence following his comments over the landmark Cass review into gender identity services for young people. The Scottish Greens co-leader refused to say whether he accepted the report's conclusions when asked during an interview this week. Asked five times if he accepts the report, the minister refused to say, instead claiming it has been ‘politicised and weaponised’ against trans people.” (Daily Record)

Apr 22: The Cass Review Won’t Fade Away—How youth gender medicine broke almost every liberal institution it touched. “The consensus is so strong and so intense that CNN has a stock sentence that it has pasted into dozens of its articles on this subject: ‘Gender-affirming care is medically necessary, evidence-based care that uses a multidisciplinary approach to help a person transition from their assigned gender—the one the person was designated at birth—to their affirmed gender—the gender by which one wants to be known.’ As far as I know, CNN is the only outlet to have gone the full ‘Say the line, Bart!’ route, but countless outlets have produced exceptionally shoddy coverage of this subject that will not age well.” (The Dispatch)

Apr 19: Trans young people have nowhere to turn, and the Cass Report has made it worse—Dr Chris Noone and Karen Sugrue respond to the recent Cass Report. (The Journal)

Apr 19: 98%: Is misinformation being spread about a review of trans youth medicine?—Investigating claims that the Cass Review into gender identity services for under-18s in England's NHS ignored the vast majority of evidence (BBC)

Apr 19: Support for Stonewall crumbles after Cass review—The LGBT rights charity has come under intense scrutiny for its stance on trans rights, with the NHS and other public bodies reviewing their association (The London Times)

Apr 19: Extreme gender ideology with no basis in science has led to one of the worst medical scandals of modern times - Bill Carmichael—The Cass report published just over a week ago has uncovered one of the worst medical scandals of modern times. The distinguished paediatrician, Dr Hilary Cass, found that children and young people were given irreversible and life-changing treatments such as puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones on the basis of little or no evidence of their safety or efficacy. (The Yorkshire Post)

Apr 19: How 'social contagion' could be driving some youth to identify as transgender—The U.K.'s Cass report says social factors and online influencers may be partly behind a surge in biological girls referred to gender clinics (The National Post)

Apr 22: 'Extreme caution': Cass Review raises red flags on gender-affirming care for trans kids—Maybe the right course of action lies between the extremes. With more children experiencing gender dysphoria than ever before, some humility is demanded among both critics and activists. (USA Today)

Apr 23: Activist-Blogger Erin Reed Can't Stop Telling Falsehoods About Gender Medicine—Even when fact checked, Erin Reed, who has a popular Substack and X account, has repeatedly made demonstrably false claims about England's Cass Review and about pediatric gender-transition treatment. (Benjamin Ryan’s Substack)

Apr 22: Letters to the Editor: Concern regarding puberty blockers—One reader says the HSE must review the recently-published Cass report on gender healthcare in the UK (The Irish Examiner) 

Apr 21: The long, hard road to Cass--How whistleblowers, detransitioners and gender-critical activists took on trans ideology - and won.(Spiked)