The Emperor’s New Gender

By Erica Henry, an African-American perspective

(Copyright 2008 Street Law)

People with gender identity disorder have thoughts and feelings that fall outside of traditional gender norms, which cause them to assume that they were born in the wrong body.

This argument would be similar to claims by African-Americans during slavery or segregation that they were meant to be born with white skin instead of brown because they entertained thoughts and feelings of freedom and equality.

Assuming a gender identity that is in contradiction to one’s biological reality begs a suspension of disbelief, like that required when watching a theatrical production.  People with gender identity disorder believe – and expect everyone else to believe – a fairy-tale that simply isn’t true. 

When we cooperate with a person’s gender delusion and grant it privileges under law, the rights of other will be violated. 

During the era of segregation, the prevailing delusion was that African- Americans were not people.  This perception spawned the oppressive Jim Crow laws that restricted travel, commerce, education, and economic development opportunities for blacks.

Segregation demanded that blacks go to the back of the bus and give priority seating to whites because of the belief by whites that blacks were not people.  Today’s transgender legislation requires that biological females, in order to protect their privacy, give priority use of restrooms, showers and locker rooms to males who believe they are female.

A small child in “The Emperor’s New Clothes” was the only one with the courage to tell the truth about the king’s delusion.  Will today’s youth expose the contemporary version of this old tale by nonviolently changing public policy to protect their rights as did the youth of the 1960s, or will they deny reality and live under the legal constraints posed by this type of legislation?