Thanks for sharing Carter. I know if I were editor of Seventeen I would definitely be covering the issue in depth as I hope they are. Important issue of the day for sure as you clarified. ❤️
Grownup enby here, courageously speaking on the unspeakable trans!
If I were given the option as a child, my pronouns would have reflected my AGAB. I was born with a vagina and was socialized very very femme. I liked being a really femme kid. Girlhood was great! Womanhood? Not for me.
If you wanted to be called a boy, and people had called you a boy, what do you think would have happened? Let’s take the realities of prejudice aside—if everyone said “we love and accept you unconditionally,” what would happen? Is there something fundamentally dangerous about having an idea about your gender or expression that changes over time?
If you felt like a girl by the time you were in your teen years, would your previous identification as a boy have changed that? I personally don’t think so. For all the trans kids who KNEW their gender right away, there are plenty of others whose understanding of their gender grew and changed with time and maturity.
I think we should listen to kids when they tell us who they are. If they’re surrounded by love and acceptance, it will be easier for them to be their authentic selves, whatever that might be. And it might change! And that’s okay! But it’s a very, very basic level of autonomy that they deserve to have.
Thanks for sharing Carter. I know if I were editor of Seventeen I would definitely be covering the issue in depth as I hope they are. Important issue of the day for sure as you clarified. ❤️
Grownup enby here, courageously speaking on the unspeakable trans!
If I were given the option as a child, my pronouns would have reflected my AGAB. I was born with a vagina and was socialized very very femme. I liked being a really femme kid. Girlhood was great! Womanhood? Not for me.
If you wanted to be called a boy, and people had called you a boy, what do you think would have happened? Let’s take the realities of prejudice aside—if everyone said “we love and accept you unconditionally,” what would happen? Is there something fundamentally dangerous about having an idea about your gender or expression that changes over time?
If you felt like a girl by the time you were in your teen years, would your previous identification as a boy have changed that? I personally don’t think so. For all the trans kids who KNEW their gender right away, there are plenty of others whose understanding of their gender grew and changed with time and maturity.
I think we should listen to kids when they tell us who they are. If they’re surrounded by love and acceptance, it will be easier for them to be their authentic selves, whatever that might be. And it might change! And that’s okay! But it’s a very, very basic level of autonomy that they deserve to have.
Ultimately, what I’m gently pushing back against is the idea that it’s some kind of a big, serious choice. It doesn’t have to be!