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TRIGGER-WARNING: This article and episode contains mentions of suicide.
Last week transman Deen joined me in the studio to talk about the current mental health- and criminalisation crisis transgender people are facing, at this very moment. Today we continue our conversation where we left off, shifting the focus to sex-education and the pervasiveness of our heteronormative society.
Slutty Science
This week's Slutty Science builds on the Slutty Science from both the second episode of this season and last week's episode. In those previous episodes we defined what transgender means by differentiating sex and gender. We spoke about the urgent issues of both mental health and suicide rates amongst transgender folks and criminalisation internationally.
Today we’re starting off with a fun fact: did you know that the amount of transgender individuals globally adds up to roughly around the same amount of redheads? Speaking in percentages, we are equally as rare or maybe rather, equally as average.
Today we are diving into the world of sex-education, so let’s talk science.
The sex education made available to transgender youth, as well as transgender people’s sexuality has rarely been studied. It remains a controversial topic within academic literature, likely due to the stereotypes transgender folks face.
What has been shown in academic research is that transgender adolescents report higher rates of both dating- and sexual abuse than their cisgender counterparts.
Furthermore, transgender adolescents experience issues in school cisgender folks do not face. These include being referred to by their birth-name, rather than their actual (chosen) name* and pronoun or being forced to use toilets and locker rooms that do not correspond with their gender identity.
It can not be assumed that the needs of transgender adolescents, in terms of sex education, mirror those of cisgender adolescents. It asks for special attention that, given the heteronormative society we find ourselves in lacks more often then not. This has been shown to result in deteriorating mental health - confirming last week’s Slutty Science with a concrete example.
Eventhough digital media environments introduce new risks and liabilities for transgender individuals, they too provide certain care structures that can help them manage the trials and complexities of everyday life.
Sex-ED meant for transgender folks lacks research. What however has been proven is the increased dating- and sexual abuse rate amongst transgender people. They face issues cis folks can not relate with, raising new questions asking for new solutions.
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I hope to see you on my socials until next week and for now: Sluts Out!
Lots of love,
*It is important to not refer to someone's name as their “preferred name,” it’s just their name. Their “birth-name”, also known as “dead name”, is the one to add an adjective to - not the other way around.
Sources
Abramowitz, J. (2018). Transgender medicine- transitioning transgender children to adulthood. Reviews in Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders, 19(3), 227–230. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11154-018-9458-z
Bradford, N. J., DeWitt, J., Decker, J., Berg, D. R., Spencer, K. G., & Ross, M. W. (2018). Sex education and transgender youth: ‘Trust Means Material By and For Queer and Trans People’. Sex Education, 19(1), 84–98. https://doi.org/10.1080/14681811.2018.1478808
Cavalcante, A. (2016). “I Did It All Online:” Transgender identity and the management of everyday life. Critical Studies in Media Communication, 33(1), 109–122. https://doi.org/10.1080/15295036.2015.1129065
DuBois, L. Z., Powers, S., Everett, B. G., & Juster, R.-P. (2017). Stigma and diurnal cortisol among transitioning transgender men. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 82, 59–66. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2017.05.008
LGBT & The Law. (z.d.). Geraadpleegd op 22 december 2020, van https://www.humandignitytrust.org/lgbt-the-law/
#OUTLAWED: “The love that dare not speak its name”. (z.d.). Geraadpleegd op 22 december 2020, van http://internap.hrw.org/features/features/lgbt_laws/
Proulx, C. N., Coulter, R. W. S., Egan, J. E., Matthews, D. D., & Mair, C. (2019). Associations of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning–Inclusive Sex Education With Mental Health Outcomes and School-Based Victimization in U.S. High School Students. Journal of Adolescent Health, 64(5), 608–614. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2018.11.012
Toomey, R. B., Syvertsen, A. K., & Shramko, M. (2018). Transgender Adolescent Suicide Behavior. Pediatrics, 142(4), e20174218. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2017-4218