I was dismayed to read Mischa Popoff's column, Transgendered kids a bunch of baloney (Jan. 16) and I feel the author could benefit from the very transgender education program he slams.
Firstly, Popoff fails to cite any sources or even anecdotal evidence in his column to back up any of his statements.
Are hormone blockers really "freely given to any kids who express some degree of 'confusion' over their gender"? Surely there must be extensive counselling required before such a decision is made.
I challenge Popoff to give us some statistics or quotes from reputable sources to substantiate his claims. I challenge Daily Courier readers to question these "facts."
Secondly, Popoff seems to equate teaching children what "transgender" means with telling kids they might be transgendered.
Saying transgender education will somehow confuse students or convince them they identify with the opposite gender is like saying teaching about gay issues will somehow make students gay.
As children grow up, understanding what it means to be transgender can go a long way to promoting tolerance and acceptance of transgender people.
Yes, the transgender population may be "a couple kids out of a thousand." But teaching all kids about transgender issues is not a waste of time. Many will meet a transgender person in their lifetime, and if they can treat these vulnerable people with compassion and respect because they understand a little better what "transgender" means, then this kind of education will be beneficial.
And make no mistake, this community is vulnerable. According to a 2009 survey by Egale Canada, transgender youth were much more likely than even lesbian, gay and bisexual youth to have experienced verbal harassment or to feel unsafe at school. They are twice as likely as LGB youth to be depressed because they feel like they don't belong. Education programs like the ones Popoff decries can help improve these deplorable statistics.
Recently, the National Post published an advertisement, paid for by the Institute of Canadian Values, with a picture of a young girl and the caption: "Please! Don't confuse me. I'm a girl. Don't teach me to question if I'm a boy, transsexual, transgendered or Two-Spirited." Popoff's echoes this sentiment.
National Post publisher Douglas Kelly later apologized for running the ad, acknowledging that it "exceeded the bounds of civil discourse." I think, with this column, Popoff has done the same.
Sasha Gronsdahl,
Kelowna