SMMRY.ai TL;D[R|W|L] Made Easy!

TagLGBTQ

Progressives need to engage with the specific questions about youth gender care [Matthew Yglesias, Slow Boring]

P

• Jamelle Bouie wrote a powerful column titled “There Is No Dignity in This Kind of America” which examines conservative attacks on trans people in America.
• Bouie argues that the denial of dignity to one segment of the political community threatens the dignity of all, and calls for solidarity.
• Chris Hayes wrote a column urging Joe Biden to address America’s low and declining life expectancy, which is largely due to the opioid epidemic.
• The opioid epidemic was caused by pharmaceutical companies’ deceptive marketing of new opioid painkillers, and doctors’ overprescription of opioids.
• Mainstream liberal commentators are avoiding the details of the policy questions surrounding trans rights, such as the politicization of medical treatment for children, biological males competing in women’s sports, and physical transitioning at a young age.
• Affirmation of an equal right to human dignity does not determine a unique answer to all of these questions, and facts are important.
• NYT Opinion published the results of a focus group headlined “These 12 Transgender Americans Would Love You To Mind Your Own Business”, which highlights the need for trans people to be treated with dignity and respect.
• The focus group discussed the controversial issue of puberty-blocking medications, which are used off-label to treat gender dysphoria in minors.
• The current World Professional Association for Transgender Health recommendations say that hormones can be started at age 14 and some surgeries done at age 15 or 17.
• Reuters investigated gender clinics and found that most are comfortable prescribing puberty blockers or hormones based on the first visit, if there are no red flags and the child and parents are in agreement.
• Asking questions is important, but it must be done in good faith and with the aim of discovering answers grounded in facts.
• The rapid increase in the number of children identifying as trans raises questions about the extent to which gender-affirming medications have been clinically studied, the actual operation of clinics, and the concept of affirming children.
• There is also the question of why the increase is preponderantly among people with XX chromosomes.

Published February 16, 2023
Visit Slow Boring to read Matthew Yglesias’s original post Progressives need to engage with the specific questions about youth gender care

The Tragic Mystery of Teenage Anxiety [Derek Thompson, The Atlantic]

T

• American teenagers, especially girls and LGBQ teens, are experiencing historic rates of anxiety and sadness.
• The Youth Risk Behavior Survey found that the share of teenage girls who say they experience “persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness” increased from 36 to 57 percent from 2011 to 2021.
• LGBQ teens are more likely to experience poor mental health, unstable housing or homelessness, bullying, and suicide attempts.
• The surge in teen anxiety has coincided with other behavioral trends that aren’t obviously bad, such as a decline in smoking, drug use, and drinking.
• Possible explanations for teen anxiety include social media, school shootings, climate change, and changes in parenting.
• The best evidence suggests that social media is not like smoking, but more of an attention alcohol.
• The relationship between rising LGBQ self-identification and rising LGBQ anxiety is complicated, with liberal and conservative explanations that are irreconcilable.
• Despite the ubiquity of “therapy-speak” on the internet, modern internet culture has adopted therapy-speak while repeatedly setting fire to the actual lessons of modern therapy.

Published February 16, 2023
Visit The Atlantic to read Derek Thompson’s original post The Tragic Mystery of Teenage Anxiety

The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling [Megan Phelps-Roper, The Free Press]

T

• J.K. Rowling is one of the most successful authors in history, and her “Harry Potter” series has taught millions of children about virtues like loyalty, courage, and love.
• In 2020, Rowling sparked a global controversy when she tweeted her views on sex and gender issues.
• This led to a “revolt” among her publishers, an outcry from fans, and a torrent of negative headlines.
• In response, Rowling published an essay on sex and gender issues, including an account of her abusive ex-husband.
• In the late 1990s and early 2000s, many Christians saw her stories of witchcraft as dangerous and campaigned to have her work removed from schools and libraries.
• The author Elyanna Blaser-Gould wrote Rowling a letter, asking to interview her about her views and experiences.
• Rowling agreed, and Blaser-Gould spent time with her in Scotland, speaking with her and other people on all sides of the conflict.
• The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling podcast will begin on February 21, 2021.

Published February 14, 2023
Visit The Free Press to read Megan Phelps-Roper’s original post The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling

I Thought I Was Saving Trans Kids. Now I’m Blowing the Whistle. [Jamie Reed, The Free Press]

I

• Jamie Reed is a 42-year-old St. Louis native, a queer woman, and politically to the left of Bernie Sanders.
• She has spent her professional life providing counseling to vulnerable populations, including children in foster care, sexual minorities, and the poor.
• For almost four years, she worked at The Washington University School of Medicine Division of Infectious Diseases with teens and young adults who were HIV positive.
• In 2018, she took a job as a case manager at The Washington University Transgender Center at St. Louis Children’s Hospital.
• There was a dramatic increase in teenage girls suddenly declaring they were transgender and demanding immediate treatment with testosterone.
• To begin transitioning, the girls needed a letter of support from a therapist and a single visit to the endocrinologist for a testosterone prescription.
• The profound and permanent effects of the hormone can be seen in a matter of months, including sterility.
• Many of the patients declared they had disorders that no one believed they had, and the doctors privately recognized these false self-diagnoses as a manifestation of social contagion.
• The center downplayed the negative consequences, and emphasized the need for transition.
• Jamie Reed left the clinic in November of last year because she could no longer participate in what was happening there, and is now speaking out about the harm being done to vulnerable patients.
• Jamie Reed worked at the Transgender Center at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri.
• The center was treating teenage girls and young people from the inpatient psychiatric unit and emergency department of St. Louis Children’s Hospital.
• The doctors at the center viewed gender transition as the solution for these patients, regardless of their suffering or pain.
• Jamie raised concerns about parental rights and consent, as well as desisters and detransitioners.
• She witnessed a heartbreaking case of detransition of a teenage girl who had a double mastectomy and later wanted her breasts back.
• Jamie was reprimanded for her concerns and eventually left the center.
• She brought her concerns to the attention of Missouri’s attorney general and is calling for a moratorium on the hormonal and surgical treatment of young people with gender dysphoria.

Published February 9, 2023
Visit The Free Press to read Jamie Reed’s original post I Thought I Was Saving Trans Kids. Now I’m Blowing the Whistle.

Bad Bunny Overthrows the Grammys [Xochitl Gonzalez, The Atlantic]

B

• Bad Bunny is the official patron saint of Latinidad, making history as the first Spanish-language artist ever nominated for Album of the Year at the Grammys.
• His commercial success forced an acknowledgment that you cannot have American pop culture without Latinos.
• Bad Bunny bucks the misogynistic and homophobic history of reggaeton, wearing skirts, painting his nails, and making out with backup dancers both male and female.
• His performance at the Grammys opened with a bomba beat, featuring female dancers in traditional skirts and papier-mâché heads of Puerto Rican icons and independence advocates.
• The medley shifted to “Después de la Playa”, a merengue beat inspired by the rhythm of enslaved people cutting cane while their legs were chained together.
• Bad Bunny’s lyrics, performances, and music videos are part of a tradition of rebellion, such as his collaboration with iLe and Residente in response to the corruption scandal of then-Governor Ricardo Rosselló.

Published February 6, 2023
Visit The Atlantic to read Xochitl Gonzalez’s original post Bad Bunny Overthrows the Grammys

UPDATE: Michigan fights back [Judd Legum, Popular Information]

U

• A conservative group called the Great Schools Initiative (GSI) launched a plan called “Operation Opt-Out” to exploit a Michigan statute that allows parents to opt their children out of sex education in order to erase LGBTQ people from public schools.
• GSI created its own opt-out form to target anything during the school day that acknowledges the existence of LGBTQ people, such as a teacher wearing a rainbow pin or any book with LGBTQ characters.
• GSI has partnered with the Thomas More Society, a far-right legal organization, to enforce the GSI opt-out forms with aggressive legal action.
• The Michigan Department of Education has pushed back against GSI’s plot, stating that parents are not legally entitled to opt children out of programs, practices, and resources outside of sexual education.
• Two Michigan school districts — Rochester and Troy — have already said they will not accept GSI’s form.
• GSI’s organizers are not ready to give up and are planning to challenge the Michigan Department of Education’s memo.
• A Michigan Senate committee is considering legislation to add sexual orientation and gender identity or expression to the state’s anti-discrimination law.

Published February 6, 2023
Visit Popular Information to read Judd Legum’s original post UPDATE: Michigan fights back

Once Again, I Will Have to Take a Heavier Hand with the Comments [Freddie deBoer, Freddie deBoer’s Substack]

O

• The publisher had posted a divisive cultural topic and the comments had become anti-LGBTQ, so the publisher had to go back to the drawing board.
• The publisher is a leftist and has conventional left-wing views on almost everything, including a commitment to progress on LGBTQ issues.
• The publisher is critical of the contemporary American left of center and many left-of-center people right-code him.
• The publisher believes that many people on the right have an obsession with gender issues and need to ask themselves about their mental health.
• The publisher reminded readers that they can always take their ball and go home, and that he has to make decisions that are consistent with his values.
• The publisher also reminded readers that most drag performers are not trans.

Published January 31, 2023
Visit Freddie deBoer’s Substack to read Freddie deBoer’s original post Once Again, I Will Have to Take a Heavier Hand with the Comments

Of Course Drag Isn’t Dangerous, It’s Just Played Out and Corny [Freddie deBoer, Freddie deBoer’s Substack]

O

• The interviewee is a progressive person who is fighting against anti-LGBTQ bills in Republican states.
• They recognize that drag shows have become normalized and embraced by a sports league, which is a sign of progress but also a loss of something that was once countercultural.
• They argue that drag shows are not inherently sexual and that parents should be able to make the choice to take their children to a drag show or not.
• They point out that the same cultural processes that make drag shows more acceptable are also making gay marriage possible.
• They argue that normalization and assimilation are the same thing and that marginalized people cannot have both respectability and radicalism.

Published January 30, 2023
Visit Freddie deBoer’s Substack to read Freddie deBoer’s original post Of Course Drag Isn’t Dangerous, It’s Just Played Out and Corny

Inside the audacious new scheme to erase LGBTQ people from Michigan schools [Judd Legum, Popular Information]

I

• Great Schools Initiative (GSI): A newly-formed conservative group launching a plan to remake Michigan public schools by exploiting a Michigan statute that allows parents to opt their children out of sex education.
• Led by co-founders Nathan Pawl, Matthew Nelson, and Monica Yatooma, GSI seeks to redefine “sex education” to include a teacher wearing a rainbow pin, teaching about the women’s suffrage movement, the availability of a gender-neutral bathroom, any book with LGBTQ characters, and any acknowledgment of LGBTQ pride week.
• GSI plans to overwhelm Michigan schools with litigation, funded by the far-right Thomas More Society. The group has access to the LET THEM BE Facebook group, which has over 55,000 members.
• GSI’s website features testimonials from fake Michigan parents, and it is unclear who is funding the group’s operations.

Published January 30, 2023
Visit Popular Information to read Judd Legum’s original post Inside the audacious new scheme to erase LGBTQ people from Michigan schools

Major corporations back book-banning North Dakota legislator [Judd Legum, Popular Information]

M

• North Dakota House Majority Leader Mike Lefor (R) has proposed legislation that would prohibit public libraries from maintaining books with LGBTQ characters and themes.
• The legislation defines a “sexually explicit” book as one that contains a “visual depiction” of twelve items, including “sexual identity” and “gender identity.”
• Librarians argue that the legislation would require them to remove most books with LGBTQ characters, and that it promotes censorship and book bans.
• The legislation provides that librarians that make prohibited materials available would face “up to 30 days imprisonment” and a $1500 fine.
• Lefor introduced the legislation because the book “Let’s Talk About It: The Teen’s Guide to Sex, Relationships, and Being a Human” was available in public libraries.
• The legislation is likely unconstitutional, as the Supreme Court has ruled that governments are not permitted to remove materials from libraries because they disapprove of the content.
• Lefor is supported by some of the most prominent corporations in the United States, including Johnson & Johnson, AT&T, NextEra Energy, ConocoPhillips, and Marathon Petroleum.

Published January 26, 2023
Visit Popular Information to read Judd Legum’s original post Major corporations back book-banning North Dakota legislator

SMMRY.ai TL;D[R|W|L] Made Easy!
Please Signup
    Strength: Very Weak
     
    Powered by ARMember
      (Unlicensed)

    Follow SMMRY.AI on Twitter


    All Tags

    Advertising AI Amazon Antitrust Apple Art Arts & Culture Asia Autobiography Biden Big Tech Budget Deficit Celebrities ChatGPT China Chips Christmas Climate Change Community Congress Covid Crime Criminal Justice Crypto Culture Wars DEI Democrats Demographics DeSantis Economic Development Education (College/University) Education (K-12) Elections Elon Musk Energy Environment Espionage Europe Federal Reserve Florida Free Speech Gender Geopolitics Germany Global Economics Globalization Google Government Health History Housing Market Immigration India Inequality Inflation Infrastructure Innovation Intel Labor Market Law Legal LGBTQ Macroeconomics Media Medicine Mental Health Meta Microsoft Military Movies & TV Music News Roundup NFL Oceans OpenAI Parenting Pregnancy Psychology Public Health Race Recession Religion Renewables Republicans Research Russia Science Social Media Software Space Sports State law Supreme Court Trump Twitter Ukraine US Business US Economy US Politics US Taxes