Transexuals

[Vincent]

Just wanted to leave this out here.

http://waltheyer.typepad.com/blog/2013/1...traum.html

I recommend giving this a read to widen your perspective, just in case.

Read it. Similarly, to broaden YOUR perspective, I'd like you to do a little more research from actual scholarly sources, rather than online blogs and news papers like the Guardian. Especially considering that some of his sources are from the 70s. And ESPECIALLY when they drag in John Hopkins' name. 

For example, this study on male-to-female transsexuals found that only 8% regret/have feelings of doubt about their transition. 
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19997841

And this Sweedish study found that 95% of individuals report positive results, and 90% were either stable or improved the quality of their life. 
https://www.skane.se/Upload/Webbplatser/...Annika.pdf

I'd also like to address some misleading claim your author made:

Injustice at Every Turn: A Report of the National Transgender Discrimination Survey says a staggering 41% of transgenders surveyed report they have attempted suicide and that those who have medically transitioned and surgically transitioned have higher rates of attempted suicide than the general population.

First, 41% is a percentage applied to all transgender people, not only ones who have had medical operations. 

While there may be a higher level of suicides among those who are or have medically transitioned, the source the author is pulling from directly states that the causes of suicide attempts by both transgenders and transsexuals are generally traumatic life events such as job loss, family problems, and housing loss. All of which are a result not of the medical procedures, but of living in a society of transphobia and discrimination. And when someone medically transitions, that is when they are at an even greater risk of bullying and harassment, especially being thrown out of their house, rejected by their families, and fired from their jobs. 

"Ttransgenders have higher rate of HIV infections. They are more prone to heavy drinking and the use of drugs. They have high rates of homelessness, unemployment and extreme poverty, even more so in the more difficult economic times of the last 5 years."

Again, all of this is applied to the entire transgender community, not just transsexuals. 

The article the author is citing clearly establishes (if he had taken the time to read it) that these things are not correlated with the individual being transgender or wanting surgery, but more so with discrimination, unsupportive families, families kicking them out of the house for being transgender, not being able to get a job for being transgender, being kicked out of their OWN houses for being transgender, and thus being homeless, impoverished, and facing economic troubles. There was no causation established between any of those things and the fact that the person is seeking to medically transition or has medically transitioned. That is not the problem here. The problem is transphobia. 


And perhaps you should tell the author of that article that the article he cited is actually ADVOCATING for easier access of transgender people to hormone/medical treatment. It pays to read your sources.