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John Michael “Mike” Bailey (born 1951) is an American psychologist, considered one of the most unethical sexologists in history. Bailey’s checkered career is a series of ethics scandals and controversies.

Since 2003 this site has documented Bailey’s central role in the academic exploitation of sex and gender minorities. One history book says my work coordinating the community response to anti-trans academics “represented one of the most organized and unified examples of transgender activism seen to date.” In 2021 the United States Library of Congress selected this site for archiving because it is “an important part of this collection and the historical record.”

Bailey’s notable ethical scandals

Children and sex

  • supporting “many offending pedophiles who are usually punished far more harshly than research suggests is warranted by the harm they cause.”
  • supporting leniency for a rapist whose victims are infants and young children: “if he didn’t physically hurt them, and if they didn’t remember traumatically, his actions should be penalized less than had he physically hurt them and they did remember.”
  • promulgating the concept of “pre-homosexual” children: “pre-homosexual children tend to be relatively gender nonconforming.”
  • claiming to know the sexual orientation of children
  • supporting fired sexologist Kenneth Zucker, whose “therapy” of gender diverse children has been widely outlawed and described as “child abuse”
  • supporting penile plethysmography, a controversial device for measuring genital arousal; some sexologists have attached plethysmographs to the penises of children to measure their erections for “research”
  • Supporting convicted serial child rapist Jerry Sandusky: “In an exchange with Wright County Circuit Court Judge Craig Carter, Bailey affirmed his belief that Sandusky’s accusers had lied. ‘You believe the people testifying against Jerry Sandusky are lying?’ Carter asked. Bailey responded, ‘I can see that if you are not familiar with the evidence that I am familiar with, you would be shocked.'”

Eugenics

  • dissertation advisor and mentor Lee Willerman was a member of the American Eugenics Society
  • stating it is “morally acceptable” to screen for and abort gay fetuses: “selection for heterosexuality may benefit parents and children and is unlikely to cause significant harm.”
  • arguing that “offering sex offenders the opportunity to be castrated in return for a reduced sentence is not ethically problematic coercion.”
  • member of the Human Biodiversity Institute

Gay and lesbian

  • claiming that “evolutionarily, homosexuality is a big mistake.”
  • claiming homosexuality may represent a “developmental error.”

Bisexuality

Northwestern students

Transgender

In this section

Note: In 2025, this site phased out AI illustrations after artist feedback. The previous illustration is here.

Miquel Missé Sánchez is a Spanish sociologist. Missé, who is transgender, has been published in anti-trans publication UnHerd.

Background

Miquel Missé Sánchez was born in 1986 in Barcelona. Missé graduated from Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona.

Missé has written several works about the intersection of gender and medicine:

  • El género desordenado: críticas en torno al patologización de la transexualidad (Egales: 2010)
  • Políticas trans. Una antología de textos desde los estudios trans norteamericanos (Egales: 2015)
  • Transexualidades, otras miradas posibles (Egales: 2013)
  • A la conquista del cuerpo equivocado (Egales: 2018)

The Myth of the Wrong Body

In 2018 Missé published The Myth of the Wrong Body (A la conquista del cuerpo equivocado). As philosopher Talia Mae Bettcher and author Janet Mock have explained, the “wrong body” metaphor has a number of versions:

  • born in the wrong body
  • trapped in the wrong body
  • soul of a [woman] in the body of a [man] (or vice versa)

Unfortunately, many cisgender people and some trans people take these metaphors literally. Critics will retort “no one is born in the wrong body.”

Most trans people reject all forms of the “wrong body” idea. That’s why this convenient and lazy description is mainly used by cisgender people, gender-diverse children, and low-information trans adults.

As I wrote in the academic journal Gender Medicine in 2006:

Gender identity and expression take on different meanings within different systems of thought. Because medical technologies are available to assist in the somatic expression of these identities, several medicalized disease models of the phenomena have developed. 

Both Missé and I are critical of these medicalized approaches to gender identity and expression. Being transgender is a trait, neither good nor bad. Disease models are a major historical source of our oppression.

The traditional focus on the so-called “triadic therapy” of hormones, genital surgery, and living “in role” has diminished in my lifetime. Trans and gender diverse people have many more choices for how to express themselves. Unfortunately, some people believe that medical transition will make them a new person or solve problems it can’t. As my therapist once said, “There’s never a happy ending to an unhappy journey.”

The reason anti-trans publication UnHerd excerpted Missé’s book was because they had just published “You can’t be born in the wrong body” by Ellen Pasternack. They felt that Missé backs this up. UnHerd also promotes the anti-transgender conspiracy theory that transgender healthcare is a money grab by Big Pharma and greedy surgeons who are luring people into expensive medical options.

Missé does have a point that under consumer capitalism, some medical professionals are guilty of profiting off trans insecurity. Unfortunately, many trans people are gender schematic, meaning they very much believe in a rigid gender binary and traditional gender roles. These are people most likely to believe medical interventions will make them happy. In many cases, they might. Missé is right to question these assumptions and criticize the unethical, inept, and predatory healthcare providers selling a bill of goods to anxious and insecure trans people.

If UnHerd editors grasped the more radical ideas underpinning what Missé is saying, they would almost certainly not have published this excerpt. You do not need hormones or surgery to claim your identity as a man, woman, or any other identity. Trans people existed long before those technologies were available, and we are the vanguard of humanity’s future possibilities.

References

Halberstram, Jack; Missé, Miquel (March 18, 2022). Jack Halberstam: «There are many different ways of being masculine, but do we know how to bring the structure that we call ‘masculinity’ down?» Idee No. 54: Rethinking Masculinity to Transform Society. https://revistaidees.cat/en/jack-halberstam-there-are-many-different-ways-of-being-masculine-but-do-we-know-how-to-bring-the-structure-that-we-call-masculinity-down/

Missé, Miquel (June 1, 2022). The doctors profiting from trans surgery. UnHerd https://unherd.com/2022/06/the-doctors-profiting-from-trans-surgery/

Bettcher TM (2014). Trapped in the Wrong Theory: Rethinking Trans Oppression and Resistance. Signs Vol. 39, No. 2 (Winter 2014), pp. 383-406 https://doi.org/10.1086/673088

Mock, Janet (2012). Unlearning the ‘Trapped’ Narrative & Taking Ownership of Our Bodies. https://janetmock.com/2012/07/09/josie-romero-dateline-transgender-trapped-body/

Media

Critical Theory with Judith Butler and Miguel Missé (September 1, 2023). Debate: A Morning with Judith Butler – Lecture and Discussion with Miquel Missé [English]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yCrN3Ookco

Resources

Miquel Missé (miguelmisse.com)

Wikipedia (es.wikipedia.org)

CCCB (cccb.org)

Isabella Malbin is an American anti-transgender activist and former birth worker.

Malbin is also an artist, hypnotist, podcaster, and snake charmer.

Background

Isabella A. Malbin was born on August 14, 1991 and graduated from LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts. While attending Rhode Island School of Design, Malbin claims to have been “groomed into transgender ideology.”

The Isabella A. Malbin Trust fund was a shareholder in the Texas-based Simon C. Cornelius Partnership Ltd.

Malbin reportedly became concerned about value-neutral language after hearing a Caesarean section referred to as a belly birth. In March of 2020, a fertility education program dismissed Malbin for refusing to use gender-inclusive language such as people who menstruate or people with uteruses. Malbin claims the dismissal was for using the terms mother and woman. 

Malbin frequently collaborates with other gender critical activists and maintains lists of “TERF approved” resources. Malbin and Mary Lou Singleton sell a $149.00 membership that includes a program called “Inoculating Our Children Against Transgender Ideology.”

Podcast

Malbin began the Whose Body Is It podcast in 2020. It contains “interviews with radical women raising consciousness on the harms of transgender ideology, pornography, prostitution, the medical industrial complex.”

2023

  • 85. Escaping Sex Trafficking in the Age of “Sex Work is Work” │ Olivia Ballard
  • 84. Children Can’t Consent │ Charlie’s Story
  • 83. A Holistic & Spiritual Approach to Infertility │ Kristin Hauser
  • 82. False Promises & Exploitation: The Truth about IVF & Surrogacy │ Marche’s Story
  • 81. Standing for Women’s Sex Based Rights at NYC Pride 2023 │ K. Yang
  • 80. What has porn done to us? │ Serendipiti Day
  • 79. Navigating Betrayal & Belonging Post Mastectomy & Breast Implant Illness │ Dr. Amanda Savage Brown
  • 78. Detransition and Grow with Leigh Janet Marshall
  • 77. ‘The Second Colonization’: The Impact of Gender Identity on Māori People with Michelle Uriarau
  • 76. (Preview) What You Need to Know about the Medicated Shooters Headed to Our Schools with Robbie Rose
  • 75. A New Look at Reproductive Sovereignty, Raising Boys and Recovering Our Instincts with Amy Ebert
  • 74. The Ethics of Assisted Reproductive Technology with Jennifer Lahl
  • 73. ‘Indigenous Feminism Redefined’ with Cherry Smiley
  • 72.  Sexual Politics for Women with Julia Beck
  • 71. Gender Critical Comedy & Speaking Out in The Age of Trans with A Swags
  • 70. Will the NYTimes finally admit they know what a woman is? Debrief with Amanda Stulman
  • 69. From Bio Queen to Jewish Convert: Deborah’s Story
  • 68. Radical Feminist Collectives and Direct Action Strategies with Jesika Gonzalez
  • 67. Learning the Language of Your Body with Kelly Love
  • 66. Healing After Transgender Indoctrination & Medicalization with Emma Eden

2022

  • 65. Time to Awaken with Ora Nadrich (Preview)
  • 64. Feminism & The First Amendment with Marissa Darlingh
  • 63. Fighting Female Genital Mutilation with Hibo Wardere
  • (Preview) Seeking Justice For A Generation Betrayed with Kim Mack Rosenberg
  • 62. Unpacking Common Myths & Misconceptions About Indigenous Two-Spirit & Third Genders (Inside Look!)
  • 61. The Challenges of Organizing Women-Only Events with Samantha Berg
  • 60. What the hell happened in NYC? Full debrief of Speaker’s Corner Event w/ Amy Sousa & K. Yang
  • 59. How to Protect a Gender Non-Conforming Daughter with Charlotte Reedy
  • 58. Kellie-Jay Keen (aka Posie Parker) in Austin! Recap of the Speakers Corner & VIP Terf Cocktail Hour
  • 57. From Chronic Illness and Trans Ideology to Embodiment: Rae’s Story
  • 56. ‘Being & Being Bought’: Prostitution & Surrogacy through a Socialist Feminist Lens w/ Kajsa Ekman
  • 55. Disease is not a Punishment: A Dive into German New Medicine with Dr. Melissa Sell
  • 54  Why Pelvic Health is a Feminist Issue with Adelaide Meadow
  • 53. Sex Dolls, Robots & Woman Hating with Australian Writer and Activist Caitlin Roper
  • 52. Defamation, DARVO, and What Happens When Men Are Welcomed into Women’s Spaces with Kate Rose
  • 51. The Status of a Mother with Israeli Artist, Activist and Twin Mom, Shira Richter
  • 50. Radical Feminism, Women’s Festivals & Unpacking BDSM with Serendipiti Day
  • (Preview) What’s the deal with Two-Spirit and Third Gender
  • 49. The UN Is Pushing Female Erasure on a Global Scale w/ Former Trans Rights Activist, K. Yang
  • 48. The Dark History of “Transgender Medicine”, WPATH & Child Castration w/ Genevieve Gluck
  • (Panel) Women Leaving The Left: A Panel Discussion for the Politically Homeless
  • 47. The Devastating Psychological Effects of Gender Ideology in Child Development & Society w/ Amy Sousa
  • 46. What Will Happen to Women if Medical Abortion is Criminalized? w/ Mary Lou Singleton
  • 45. Losing Custody: A Frontline Story with Mother Jeannette Cooper
  • 44. Confronting My Pediatrician For Injecting Me With Experimental “Medicine”
  • 43. Getting Your Daughter Out of The Trans Cult: Jennifer’s Success Story
  • 42. My Zoom Ambush: A Tale to Remember (audio only)
  • 41. Transgender Ideology in Schools, Loss of Parental Rights and Taking Action with Michelle Evans
  • 40. Full Body Nourishment & Healing After Hysterectomy with Suuzi Hazen
  • 39. [missing]
  • 38. The Dangers of They/Them-ing Children with Belle Cardinal
  • 37. Trans Identities, Dissociative Identity Disorder & The Fragmented Self with Annika Mongan
  • 36. Roxie, a Dominatrix Turned Radical Feminist Tells All
  • 35. The Racist Origins of ‘Gender Neutral’ Language & Women’s Bodies as Currency w/ Dr. Suzanne Vierling
  • 34. The Abolition of Sex with Kara Dansky
  • 33. Emelie’s De-transition & Path to Self-Acceptance
  • 32. Ultra-Sex or De-Sex with Alix Aharon
  • 31. The Brutal Reality of Porn & Prostitution with Elly Arrow

2021

  • 30. How It All Began with Meghan Murphy
  • 29. The Reality of Men in Women’s Prisons with Amie Ichikawa
  • 28. The Attack on Our Sexed Bodies with Jennifer Bilek
    • (Clip) “Nobody can be ‘transphobic’ because ‘trans’ is an ad campaign.” -Jennifer Bilek
  • 27. The MRC-5 – Transgender Connection with Robbie Rose Part 2
  • 26. Gaslighting Mothers, Transgenderism and Vaxxine Injury with Robbie Rose Part 1
  • 25. Resisting Groupthink: Gender Identity & The New Normal w/ TheDeprogrammerXX -PART 3
  • 24. Revealing the LGBT-PEDO Connection w/ TheDeprogrammerXX – PART 2
  • 23. Exposing The Trans Agenda w/ TheDeprogrammerXX – PART 1
  • 22. From Transgender to Transhuman with Athena of @WildWilingWisdom
  • 21. Why is Transgender Porn Immune from Public Scrutiny? with Genevieve Gluck
  • 20. Documenting the Harms of Transgenderism with Jennifer Lahl
  • 19. Audrie’s Detransition: A Redemption Story
  • 18. The Truth About Castration Fetishes & Puberty Blockers with Genevieve Gluck
  • 17. Driving Smart Women Mad | Cancelled for Saying WOMAN | Part 1
  • 16. Sexuality Erasure with Joey Brite and MrMenno
  • 15. Getting Cancelled & Gender Dysphoria with Stella Perrett
  • 14. The TRUTH about Sissy Hypno Porn with Genevieve Gluck
  • 13. Transgenderism, Feminism, and Covid with Yolande Norris-Clark
  • 12. ‘This is a time to act’ with Courtney Piper CatEarth
  • 11. “This is An Emergency”: Protecting Women and Girls with Kara Dansky

2020

  • 10. Transhumanism & Autogynephilia with Jennifer Bilek:
  • 9. Fired for Standing For Women with Sasha White
  • 8. The Value of Women-Only Spaces with Emilee Saldaya
  • 7. The Truth about Planned Parenthood & Transgenderism with Alix Aharon
  • 6. Willow’s Transition and De-transition
  • 5. Sissy Hypno Porn & Transgenderism: Angela Shares Her Story
  • 4. Radical Feminism & Gender Ideology Extremism with Rhea M. Riley
  • 3. You’re not a hateful bitch: A message to women who oppose trans ideology.
  • 2. My Indoctrination into Trans Ideology
  • 1. Transgender Ideology, The Birth World & Holding the Line for Women & Girls ∣ Courtney Piper CatEarth

References

Macdonald, Jocelyn (July 22, 2022). Why Are Trans Activists Appropriating Two-Spirit Identities? AfterEllen https://afterellen.com/why-are-trans-activists-appropriating-two-spirit-and-identities/

Sweeney, Chris (January 14, 2022). ‘My job is to help women give birth, but I was banned from using the word “mother.”’ RT https://www.rt.com/uk/542475-gender-inclusive-language-perinatal-services/

Appearances

With Benjamin Boyce

  • PreggerU: Tales of a Birthing Coach | with Isabella Malbin (February 25, 2022)
  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8N4T9S3MBI
  • All The Birthing People | with Isabella Malbin (January 11, 2021)
  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kfbTDtzEv_s

With Meghan Murphy

  • Live! Is challenging gender identity racist? Feat. Isabella Malbin and K. Yang-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWeKqlVMugw
  • The Same Drugs live stream: Isabella Malbin on bodily autonomy and expanding the abortion debate
  • -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nS5LZ_vRQZc

With Chris Sweeney

  • Is it wrong to use the term mother? Trans debate in birth world. #trans #birthing
  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7ibgQUAd0k
  • https://rumble.com/vsnhir-i-was-banned-from-using-the-word-mother-isabella-malbin.html

With Women’s Declaration International

  • Living the Declaration, Article 2: Motherhood Is an Exclusively Female Status. 5/26/22
  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fiaVTczjb0

With Sasha White and M. K. Fain

  • Radical Truths with Isabella Malbin (August 9, 2021)
  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQSQ8-ET3zc

Resources

Whose Body Is It (whosebodyisit.com)

YouTube (youtube.com)

X/Twitter (x.com)

Instagram (instagram.com)

Doula Match (doulamatch.net)

  • Isabella Malbin [inactive]
  • http://doulamatch.net/profile/14617

Romio (romio.com)

  • Isabella Malbin [inactive]
  • https://romio.com/l/new-york-city/user-profile/isabella-malbin/

Travis D. Brown is an American anti-progressive and anti-transgender propagandist. Brown produced the 2023 anti-trans series Uncomfortable Truths: The Reality of Gender Identity Ideology.

note: for the trans-supportive programmer, see Travis Brown.

Background

Travis David Brown is “a skeptic and free-thinker” who lives in Portland, Oregon and has been a videographer since 2009. Brown claims to explore themes of “dogma, faith and credulity.”

Brown was a camera operator and cinematographer on several small projects. Brown co-directed the 2018 film All Too Human with Mandy Stockholm.

Anti-transgender activism

Brown is closely associated with anti-trans extremists at Genspect. Brown raised $450 on a $29,500 goal to travel to Ireland to film a 2023 Genspect conference:

Hello. My name is Travis Brown, and I am a documentary filmmaker out of Oregon. For a few years now I’ve been covering topics around woke ideology and how to improve dialogue between people who have diametrically opposed views.

In my upcoming documentary, I’ll be tackling the very important and sensitive topic of gender ideology. There’s so much confusion and frustration when it comes to discussing trans issues, but I hope to help paint a clear picture of what is going on, why, and what can be done about it to protect young people, keep families intact, and keep women’s spaces from being overtaken by men.

If you’ve been following the trans debate, you’ll know why it’s crucial to have clear and concise explanations and advice on this topic without hyperbole. With the spread of gender ideology, we have so many young people, and even some adults who are fooled into thinking that the only solution to their distress is to take hormones or get life-altering surgeries. But this often just makes their problems much worse and can increase suicidal ideation. And that’s just the tip of this problematic iceberg.

In my docuseries called The Woke Reformation, I’ve covered topics of critical race theory, woke capitalism, the roots of this ideology, in neo-Marxism and postmodernism, and more. I’ve been lucky enough to work with Peter Boghossian, who has produced this series, and to have interviewed Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Douglas Murray, Vivek Ramaswamy, Niall Ferguson, [onscreen: Mark Pellegrino, Benjamin Boyce] and so many more incredible people.

For this documentary, I’ll have more amazing guests like Helen Joyce, the author of TRANS, and some pediatricians, counselors, detransitioners, and other important voices. In order to make this my best documentary so far, I need your help. I have a great opportunity to fly to the UK for some exciting interviews and to film an important conference put on by Genspect. Most of the costs are covered, but I’m still about $6,000 short.

I don’t do interviews over Zoom because I’m committed to creating very high-quality content, and filming in person is always much better than recording virtual interviews. I’m really concerned about what’s happening in our society, and I believe we have to be honest about biology, the differences between men and women, the importance of single-sex spaces, and the safety of our children.

So I could really use your help. If you can contribute any amount, it would be very grateful. Or if you can share this video and GiveSendGo link around, that would be awesome. Please help me bring some sanity to the discourse around gender ideology. Thanks for watching. 

Media

Brown, Travis (September 23, 2022). Combating Woke Myths – Trans women are women. The Signal Productions https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jEUW_wg0d0

Brown, Travis (2023). Fundraising video. https://vimeo.com/815741130 [removed]

Resources

The Signal Productions (thesignalproductions.com)

SEP: Signal Education Project (signaleducationproject.org)

All Too Human (alltoohuman.film) [archive]

When in Doubt (whenindoubtfilm.com) [archive]

Twitter (twitter.com)

Locals (locals.com)

YouTube (youtube.com)

Vimeo (vimeo.com)

Facebook (facebook.com)

IMDb (imdb.com)

Indiegogo (indiegogo.com)

  • projects/all-too-human [archive]
  • raised ~$7,300 on $35,500 goal

FilmFreeway (filmfreeway.com)

GiveSendGo (givesendgo.com)

Oregon Secretary of State (egov.sos.state.or.us)

Abel Garcia is an American ex-transgender activist. Garcia gets money and attention by making it more difficult for others to get trans healthcare.

Background

Garcia was born in 1997. According to Garcia, this is the timeline:

  • 2009 (age 12) began thinking about transition
  • 2015 (age 18) began looking for help to transition and found a therapist, attending sessions for over a year
  • 2016 (age 19) moved out of the family home and began transition
  • 2017 (age 20) legal name and gender change
  • 2018 (age 21)
    • got breast implants; was initially happy, had regrets a few months later
    • turned away from that “lifestyle” following a “salvation from God”
    • began looking for help to “detransition”
  • 2019 (age 22) found a new therapist
  • 2020 (age 23) had implants removed and began socially “detransitioning”
  • 2021 (age 24) planned follow-up surgery to remove unwanted breast tissue

Ex-transgender activism

Since embracing religious conservatism, Garcia is featured in a number of anti-trans projects, including the 2023 film No Way Back.

Garcia has been interviewed by gender critical activists including

  • Erin Brewer
  • Kellie Fell
  • Drew Hernandez
  • Brittany Ortiz

Garcia has been interviewed by other ex-trans activists including:

Garcia has been interviewed anti-trans-front groups including:

Garcia appears in the 2023 anti-trans media piece DETRANS by PragerU.

References

Astor, Maggie (May 16, 2023) How a Few Stories of Regret Fuel the Push to Restrict Gender Transition Care. New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/16/us/politics/transgender-care-detransitioners.html

Fell, Kelly (Nov 8, 2022). Venus Rising With Detransitioner Abel Garcia. Venus Rising / The Center for Bioethics and Culture Network https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zwytvt5bPsA

Cole, Chloe (April 20, 2023). Detransitioner Abel Garcia speaks in ATX on detransitioning as a male. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eK_gad4nR0Y

Hernandez, Drew (Nov 2, 2022). DETRANSITIONED: The Abel Garcia Story. FRONTLINES https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXxQ48XbNvE Part Two https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lW0XNJPnZ9s

Partners for Ethical Care (Oct 26, 2022). First Do No Harm Unity Rally- Detransitioner Abel Garcia Speaks Out. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnkOn0i8LuI

Ortiz, Brittany (January 18, 2022). Abel Garcia: Conversion Therapy and Medical Detransition with Detrans Man. A Slightly Twisted Female https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gROhaA9uHeo

Brewer, Erin (Jul 11, 2022). Transjacked: Abel Garcia. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thEXWfLOg5U

PragerU (October 25, 2023). DETRANS: The Dangers of Gender-Affirming Care. https://www.prageru.com/video/detrans

Resources

Trans Data Library (transdatalibrary.org)

Twitter (twitter.com)

YouTube (youtube.com)

Instagram (instagram.com)

Barbara Kay is a Canadian writer and anti-transgender activist.

Background

Barbara Kay was born on November 27, 1943 and grew up in Toronto with siblings.

Kay earned a bachelor’s degree from University of Toronto and a master’s degree from McGill University in 1966.

Kay wrote opinion pieces for the National Post before becoming a columnist in 2003. Kay has also written for in The Post Millennial, Pajama, The Walrus, Canadian Jewish News (CJNews), and Epoch Times. Key briefly wrote for Rebel News in 2017 before leaving due to views held by some staffers.

Kay and spouse Ronny Kay married in 1964 and have two children, including anti-trans activist Jonathan Kay.

Anti-transgender activism

Kay opposed Canada’s Bill C-16, which added “gender identity or expression” to protected classes in regards to discrimination, hate speech, and hate crimes.

In criticizing the bill in the Post Millennial, Kay described it as “velvet totalitarianism” and misattributed a quotation to Voltaire: “To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize.” The passage was actually by white nationalist Kevin Alfred Strom describing Jewish people.

Kay told publication Canadaland:

“With regard to the application of the quote to the Church of Gender Identity, I do not regret it at all, and here is why. The quotation makes a great deal of sense. The fact that an anti-Semitic conspiracy theorist actually believed that the Jews ‘rule over you’ says a great deal about his twisted mind, but it does not reflect reality. I am neither a conspiracy theorist or a transphobic. My quarrel is not with trans gender people, who — I have said this repeatedly — simply want to live their lives in peace, but with the ideologues who are bent on imposing their belief system, founded in theory, but not in evidence, on everyone in the form of compelled speech and compelled expression of belief. The words of the quotation in fact make very good sense. That the mind who thought it up was corrupted by hatred to the point that he was delusionary about who ‘you cannot criticize’ is not my fault.”

During a July 18, 2018 Rights and Freedoms Institute event, Kay used the phrase again to condemn gender neutral pronouns as “compelled speech” and “compelled expression of belief.”

Kay’s Facebook profile uses the anti-trans dogwhistle “Adult human Female.” Kay and anti-trans activist Linda Blade wrote the 2021 book Unsporting: How Trans Activism and Science Denial are Destroying Sport.

References

Strom, Kevin A (August 14, 1993). All America Must Know the Terror That is Upon Us. American Dissident Voices via America First Books http://www.amfirstbooks.com/IntroPages/ToolBarTopics/Articles/Featured_Authors/strom,_kevin/kevin_strom_works/Kevin_Strom_1991-1994/Kevin_A._Strom_19930814-ADV_All_America_Must_Know_the_Terror_That_Is_Upon_Us.html [archive]

Reuters Fact Check (February 5, 2022). ‘To learn who rules over you’ quote wrongly attributed to Voltaire. Reuters https://www.reuters.com/article/factcheck-voltaire-quote/fact-check-to-learn-who-rules-over-you-quote-wrongly-attributed-to-voltaire-idUSL1N2UE2LM

Adriaans, Eric (June 14, 2018). Panel Discussion: Bill C-16 Controversy. Toronto: Rights and Freedoms Institute. https://freedom-of-expression.ca/2018/06/14/panel-discussion-bill-c-16-controversy/ [archive]

Goldsbie, Jonathan (July 26, 2018). Barbara Kay Quotes Neo-Nazi To Justify Attack On Trans Identity: The line, which she and others have misattributed to Voltaire, was originally penned to justify criticism of Jews. Canadaland http://www.canadalandshow.com/barbara-kay-quotes-neo-nazi-to-justify-attack-on-trans-identity/ [archive]

Selected anti-trans writing by Kay

Kay, Barbara (March 16, 2025). Barbara Kay: A chance for fairness in women’s sport. National Post https://nationalpost.com/opinion/protecting-fairness-in-womens-sport

Kay, Barbara (August 11, 2024). Barbara Kay: Groundswell against gender-affirming care becoming too loud to ignore. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/groundswell-against-gender-affirming-care-becoming-too-loud-to-ignore

Kay, Barbara (April 20, 2024). Barbara Kay: CBC doubles down on unscientific youth transgender care in wake of Cass Review. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/cbc-doubles-down-on-unscientific-youth-transgender-care-in-wake-of-cass-review

Kay, Barbara (April 7, 2024). Barbara Kay: Lawsuits could be the answer to unfair, trans-inclusive women’s sports. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-lawsuits-could-be-the-answer-to-unfair-trans-inclusive-womens-sports

Kay, Barbara (March 10, 2024). Barbara Kay: Leaked files expose the ethical rot behind modern transgender medicine.https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-leaked-files-expose-the-ethical-rot-behind-modern-transgender-medicine

Kay, Barbara (December 3, 2023). Barbara Kay: Silenced teacher becomes a hero of the anti-woke resistance. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/silenced-teacher-becomes-a-hero-of-the-anti-woke-resistance

Kay, Barbara (October 8, 2023). Barbara Kay: The movement to oppose gender activism in schools is growing — and science is on its side. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/the-movement-to-oppose-gender-activism-in-schools-is-growing-and-science-is-on-its-side

Kay, Barbara (September 9, 2023). Barbara Kay: Like Jordan Peterson, these medical professionals won’t be silenced. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/like-jordan-peterson-these-medical-professionals-wont-be-silenced

Kay, Barbara (July 23, 2023). Barbara Kay: Breaking the ideological logjam over transgender youth health. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/breaking-the-ideological-logjam-over-transgender-youth-health

Kay, Barbara (April 29, 2023). Barbara Kay: Woke Dylan Mulvaney campaign was destined to be a Bud Light failure. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/woke-dylan-mulvaney-campaign-was-never-going-to-work-for-bud-light

Kay, Barbara (February 5, 2023). Barbara Kay: Scotland scandalized over rapists placed in women’s prisons, while Canada turns a blind eye. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/scotland-scandalized-over-rapists-placed-in-womens-prisons-while-canada-turns-a-blind-eye

Kay, Barbara (January 21, 2023). Barbara Kay: Fairness may be coming back to sport. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/fairness-may-be-coming-back-to-sport

Kay, Barbara (September 24, 2022). Barbara Kay: How StatsCan is contradicting its own data on trans Canadians. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-how-statscan-is-contradicting-its-own-data-on-trans-canadians

Kay, Barbara (August 6, 2022). Barbara Kay: Tavistock closure highlights harms caused by radical gender theorists. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-tavistock-closure-highlights-harms-caused-by-radical-gender-theorists

Kay, Barbara (April 9, 2022). Barbara Kay: When gender rights only protect those who do not fit stereotypes. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-in-ontario-schools-gender-rights-only-protect-those-who-do-not-fit-stereotypes

Kay, Barbara (December 20, 2021). Barbara Kay: The case for an ‘open’ category to welcome trans athletes in sports. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-the-case-for-an-open-category-to-welcome-trans-athletes-in-sports

Kay, Barbara (August 29, 2021). Barbara Kay: Trudeau the fake feminist ignores female inmates’ concerns. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-trudeau-the-fake-feminist-ignores-female-inmates-concerns

Kay, Barbara (June 21, 2021). Barbara Kay: The complicated truth about transwomen in women’s prisons. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-the-complicated-truth-about-transwomen-in-womens-prisons

Kay, Barbara (June 7, 2021). Barbara Kay: Transgender weightlifter may expose the unfairness of trans athletes in Tokyo. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-transgender-weightlifter-may-expose-the-unfairness-of-trans-athletes-in-tokyo

Kay, Barbara (April 23, 2021). Barbara Kay: Gad Saad — the man who’s not afraid to call BS. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-gad-saad-the-man-whos-not-afraid-to-call-bs

Kay, Barbara (April 12, 2021). Barbara Kay: Without exemptions to protect women in prison, gender identity laws are unconstitutional. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-without-exemptions-to-protect-women-in-prison-gender-identity-laws-are-unconstitutional

Kay, Barbara (November 27, 2020). Barbara Kay: The problems with Bill C-6 and the gender affirmation model. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-the-problems-with-bill-c-6-and-the-gender-affirmation-model

Kay, Barbara (November 20, 2020). Barbara Kay: The case for deep-sixing Bill C-6. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-the-case-for-deep-sixing-bill-c-6

Kay, Barbara (November 6, 2020). Barbara Kay: I know a misogynistic sports policy when I see it. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-i-know-a-misogynistic-sports-policy-when-i-see-it

Kay, Barbara (October 23, 2020). Barbara Kay: Transgender sports policies have thrown fair play out the window. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-transgender-sports-policies-have-thrown-fair-play-out-the-window

Kay, Barbara (January 23, 2020). Barbara Kay: Will 2020 will be the year of reason in the cancel-culture wars? https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-will-2020-will-be-the-year-of-reason-in-the-cancel-culture-wars

Kay, Barbara (November 19, 2019). Barbara Kay: Douglas Murray is a writer who says what the rest of us would like to. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-the-writer-who-says-what-the-rest-of-us-would-like-to

Kay, Barbara (October 24, 2019). Barbara Kay: How feminist Meghan Murphy fell victim to progressives’ double standard. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-a-feminist-falls-victim-to-progressives-double-standards

Kay, Barbara (June 25, 2019). Barbara Kay: When gender identity education and theory goes wrong. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-when-gender-identity-education-and-theory-goes-wrong

Kay, Barbara (November 13, 2018). Barbara Kay: For culture warrior David Horowitz, deplatforming is no deterrent. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-for-culture-warrior-david-horowitz-deplatforming-is-no-deterrent

Kay, Barbara (September 13, 2018). Barbara Kay: Diluting the meaning of ‘woman,’ to appease transgender activists, is misogyny. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-transwomen-deserve-respect-but-they-arent-women

Kay, Barbara (August 22, 2018). Barbara Kay: A new report sounds the alarm on Rapid Onset Gender Dysphoria. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-a-new-report-sounds-the-alarm-on-rapid-onset-gender-dysphoria

Kay, Barbara (July 10, 2018). Barbara Kay: One woman’s journey from social-justice warrior to free-speech champion. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-one-womans-journey-from-social-justice-warrior-to-free-speech-champion

Kay, Barbara (July 3, 2018). Barbara Kay: Suggestions for the new Ontario sex-ed curriculum. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-suggestions-for-the-new-ontario-sex-ed-curriculum

Kay, Barbara (July 7, 2018). Bill C-16, or The Transgender Identity Bill, is an act of “Velvet Totalitarianism.” The Post Millennial https://www.thepostmillennial.com/bill-c-16-or-the-transgender-identity-bill-is-an-act-of-velvet-totalitarianism/

Kay, Barbara (March 6, 2018). Barbara Kay: There’s no safe space on campus to debate bathroom politics. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-theres-no-safe-space-on-campus-to-debate-bathroom-politics

Kay, Barbara (January 24, 2018). Barbara Kay: B.C. school official protests ‘transgender education’ — and pays the price. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-b-c-school-official-protests-transgender-education-and-pays-the-price

Kay, Barbara (December 13, 2017). Barbara Kay: Parents face scorn for worrying about letting their children change genders. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-parents-victimized-in-the-identity-vs-mental-health-battle-over-transgendered-children

Kay, Barbara (February 14, 201). Barbara Kay: Enter Milo Yiannopoulos, progressivism’s spawn and history’s pendulum in action. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-enter-milo-yiannopoulos-progessivisms-spawn-and-historys-pendulum-in-action

Kay, Barbara (January 24, 2017). Barbara Kay: Betsy DeVos’ support of due process on campuses makes her an excellent pick for secretary of education. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-betsy-devos-support-of-due-process-on-campuses-makes-her-an-excellent-pick-for-secretary-of-education

Kay, Barbara (July 31, 2012). Barbara Kay: The cold, cramped, atheistic world of Sam Harris. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-the-cold-cramped-atheistic-world-of-sam-harris

Kay, Barbara (May 21, 2012). Barbara Kay: Jenna Talackova goes double dipping in the theatre of gender politics. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/barbara-kay-jenna-talakova-goes-double-dipping-in-the-theatre-of-gender-politics

Kay, Barbara (May 25, 2011). Barbara Kay: A child’s biology is not a matter of choice. https://nationalpost.com/full-comment/barbara-kay-a-childs-biology-is-not-a-matter-of-choice

Kay, Barbara (May 10, 2010). Barbara Kay: Support Pride or you’re a homophobe. https://nationalpost.com/full-comment/barbara-kay-support-pride-or-youre-a-homophobe

Kay, Barbara (April 28, 2010). Barbara Kay: The cult of multisexualism. https://nationalpost.com/full-comment/barbara-kay-the-cult-of-multisexualism

Media

Leaders on the Frontier David Leis and Barbara Kay (September 18, 2024). We Are Letting Our Children Down | Barbara Kay. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPAgtiEyyu4

Leaders on the Frontier David Leis and Barbara Kay (September 17, 2024). UK Shutting Down Gender Affirming Centres, Canada’s Ignoring This | Barbara Kay. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nGstDH97jk

Rebel News with Ezra Levant and Barbara Kay (August 8, 2023). Transgenderism in schools: A feature interview with Barbara Kay. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZUNhuKC6nk

Rebel News with Ezra Levant and Barbara Kay (Jul 20, 2023). Barbara Kay calls out the sexualization of children through trans activism and gender ideology. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9u8qhOloYlc

The Democracy Fund with Kim Jones, Heather Mason, Amy Hamm, Jenn Smith, (September 15, 2022). LIVE EVENT: Protecting Women’s Spaces In The Age of Transgenderism. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycorHLs2qco

Unsafe Space with Carter Laren, Juliet Dillon, Mia Cathell, and Barbara Kay (August 1, 2022). [Narrative Dissonance] Gender Identity Clinic Forced to Close | With Barbara Kay & Mia Cathell

Unsafe Space with Carter Laren, Keri Smith, and Barbara Kay (July 27, 2021). [Deprogrammed] Unsporting: Linda Blade and Barbara Kay. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DR8AIjpR1KQ

Juno News with Candice Malcolm and Barbara Kay (May 26, 2020). Ep. 5 | Barbara Kay | The Woke Left, Cancel Culture and Radical Trans Activism. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLs6h4csXa8

Juno News with Andrew Lawton and Barbara Kay (February 6, 2020). Trans Politics and Free Speech (feat. Barbara Kay). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0PL0tNJX0s

Rebel News with Ezra Levant and Barbara Kay discussing Ken Zucker (January 28, 2020). Barbara Kay on the gender dysphoria researcher overcoming cancel culture | Ezra Levant. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6b3NmOhCJr8

Rebel News with Ezra Levant and Barbara Kay (December 17, 2019). Barbara Kay: Ontario mother takes on school’s trans ideology with Human Rights claim | Ezra Levant. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9I02_n7M6X8

Rebel News with Ezra Levant and Barbara Kay (October 26, 2019). Barbara Kay: “Trans exclusionary” feminist Meghan Murphy is being protested (again) | Ezra Levant. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNELHTfNXqY

Faytene TV with Faytene Grasseschi and Barbara Kay (October 2, 2019). Barbara Kay on Gender, Genital Waxing, Freedom, Marijuana, Integrity & The Election. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6PHW2bVU650

Rebel News with Ezra Levant and Barbara Kay (August 23, 2019). Barbara Kay: Transgenders sue rape shelter for “discrimination” | Ezra Levant. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdr2EFoK6hI

Bridge City News with Paul Arthur and Barbara Kay (July 5, 2019). Paul Arthur interviews Barbara Kay on the dangers of gender fluidity – July 4, 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jkNX5ygxso

Unsafe Space with Carter Laren, Keri Smith, and Barbara Kay (June 27, 2019). [Deprogrammed] Barbara Kay on Trans Activism. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RZNeN4XjLE

Rebel News with Ezra Levant and Barbara Kay (March 6, 2019). Barbara Kay: Trans athletes have “erased” REAL women from sports. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJFyJh2RWco

Rebel News with Ezra Levant and Barbara Kay (November 23, 2018). Trans “woman” gets light sentence for sexually assaulting daughter. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fN9LrBEyvI

Rebel News with Ezra Levant and Barbara Kay (October 19, 2018). Barbara Kay: Trans athletes will end women’s sports. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ph4Y26MABnU

SFS York panel with Debra Soh, Lindsay Shepherd, Jared Brown, Sarina Singh, and Barbara Kay (July 31, 2018). BILL C-16 and COMPELLED SPEECH: One Year Later. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PPXwcYtHn0

Rebel News with Ezra Levant and Barbara Kay (July 17, 2018). Gender identity programs are junk science | Barbara Kay. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LqleYq_Azo

Rebel News with Ezra Levant and Barbara Kay (July 2, 2019). Barbara Kay: School defends teaching transgender to tots | Ezra Levant. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkl0wwuWohU

Ideacity with Mark Steyn and Barbara Kay (June 26, 2018). Barbara Kay & Mark Steyn – Freedom of Speech. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7P9bQ_PwfM

LGBT Canada In The Media (July 14, 2018). Barbara Kay – Teaching Gender Identity Is Child Abuse & Gaslights Kids | Ontario Sex Ed Curriculum [CBC News clip]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ilyXXIg_4uE

Rebel News with Ezra Levant and Barbara Kay (May 9, 2018). Barbara Kay: Non-binary birth certificates are “nuts.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0hFJVyEUOg

Resources

Barbara Kay (barbarakay.ca)

Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org)

Twitter (twitter.com)

Facebook (facebook.com)

“Phil S. Illy” is the stage name of Phil Hutchinson, an American circus performer and “autogynephilia” activist.

Hutchinson proposes “autoheterosexuality” as a more value-neutral term that includes two controversial concepts: “autogynephilia” (AGP) and “autoandrophilia” (AAP).

Background

Philip M. “Phil” Hutchinson was born on September 5, 1987 to Christopher Hutchinson and Sandra L. (Ille) “Sandy” Hutchinson. Hutchinson grew up in Schenectady, New York and has a sibling Steven N. “Steve” Hutchinson.

Hutchinson’s stage name is a pun on a family name, Ille, as well as a pun of “Phil Is Silly” or “Phil’s Silly.”

Activism

Hutchinson is active on reddit under the username gockstar. The term “gock” is slang among a subset of trans and gender diverse gamers for “girlcock.”

Hutchinson is author of of the 2023 book Autoheterosexual: Attracted to Being the Other Sex. “Autogynephilia” activist and disgraced anesthesiologist Anne Lawrence said Hutchinson’s “amateurish book disrespects my research.” The foreword is by right-wing philanthropist Andrew Conru, who has funded several “autogynephilia” projects.

Other “autogynephilia” activists praised it, although many use fake names like the author. These include J. Michael Bailey, Kevin J. Hsu, Zack M. Davis, Aaron Terrell, “Kristina C,” ex-trans activist Laura Reynolds, “James L.,” and “Tracing Woodgrains.”

“Autogynephilia” as a taxonomy appeals to a very specific type of person: neurodiverse, fixated on collecting and categorizing, socially isolated/eccentric, rigid thinking.

Hutchinson was invited to the 2023 anti-transgender conference “The Puzzle of Sexual Orientation” founded by Lee Ellis.

In 2023 Hutchinson attended the anti-transgender Genspect conference, leading to significant controversy:

We had a photographer who was diligently taking photos at the event and one of the photos taken was of two attendees, Laura Becker, a detransitioned woman, and Phil Illy, a man in a dress. Phil is unusual – he is a self-confessed autogynephile who has written a book that puts forward his conceptualisation of autogynephilia (a paraphilia that refers to a male’s propensity to be sexually aroused by the thought of himself as a female) and redefines it as ‘autoheterosexuality’. Phil did not speak at the conference nor did he sell his book there.

O’Malley (2023)

Critics pointed out that the disease “autogynephilia” is considered by its creators to be a sexual disorder that involves nonconsenting adults or the suffering and humiliation of others. Hutchinson’s “public display of fetish” is akin to someone who exposes themselves to others for sexual gratification, according to the anti-trans extremists with whom Hutchinson associates.

Others pointed out that Hutchinson’s book advocates for awareness and recognition of autoerotic expressions of race, age, species, and ability. O’Malley removed Hutchinson’s book from Genspect’s recommended reading list after learning that Hutchinson supported youth transition.

According to the Daily Dot, Hutchinson is also involved in activism around race change to another, or RCTA:

Author Phil Illy has studied race dysphoria and transracialism, including by surveying people who identify as transracial.

Based on this work and academic research on the subject, Illy believes that RCTA is very similar to race dysphoria despite members of transracial communities rejecting the comparison.

“RCTA refers to imagining oneself as another race or having an enduring wish to be another race,” he told the Daily Dot. “It happens when a person’s race-based attraction includes the desire to be the race they love.”

Illy said that many people he interviewed who identify as transracial describe racial dysphoria in starkly negative terms.

Nejam (2023)

References

Nejam, Abderrahemane (September 1, 2023). Race change to another, explained. Daily Dot https://www.dailydot.com/news/race-change-to-another/

O’Malley, Stella (November 11, 2023). The Split. Genspect https://genspect.org/the-split/

Media

Leslie Elliott and Shannon Thrace (November 12, 2023). A Civil Dialogue about Autogynephilia, with Phil Illy & Shannon Thrace -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eM6lWJ6cJsk

Nathan Ferguson (August 19, 2023). The Two Types of Trans w/ Phil Illy | Street Epistemology https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khBR6rMksxY

Oren Amitay and Malini Ondrovcik (Jun 21, 2023). Autoheterosexual Pt 1: Redefining Autogynephilia | Awake at the Wheel | Phil Illy | Ep 16https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmU3a-PcYS0

Benjamin Boyce (June 16, 2023). Autogynephilia’s Impact on Intimacy | with Phil Illy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPBFfINW4A0

Benjamin Boyce (Feb 16, 2023). Autogynephilia: The Sexual Orientation Fueling Transition | with Phil Illy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyy5bpIUwEE

Aaron Kimberly and Aaron Terrell (Feb 5, 2023). EP55 – Autohetero – with Phil Illy Gender Dysphoria Alliance https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5eU69WNSOjo

Resources

Funhouse Lounge (funhouselounge.com)

Shift Festival (shiftfestival.com)

  • Phil Illy
  • https://www.shiftfestival.com/portfolio_item/phil-illy

Twitter (twitter.com)

Substack (substack.com)

Reddit (reddit.com)

Facebook (facebook.com)

Disqus (disqus.com)

PayPal (paypal.com)

Kevin J. Hsu is an American psychologist and anti-transgender activist.

Hsu published pathologizing research on “shemales” while working with dissertation advisor J. Michael Bailey at Northwestern University. Hsu is a “gender critical” millennial associated with sexology’s conservative fringe.

Background

Hsu was born in ~1990, grew up in Texas, and attended Northwestern, earning a bachelor’s degree in 2012 and a doctorate in 2019. Hsu did a psychology internship in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

His research has focused broadly on understanding sexual orientation using a variety of methods. His clinical work has focused primarily on the assessment and treatment of adults with various psychiatric problems, including anxiety, depression, and substance abuse.

Hsu’s dissertation was titled “Erotic Target Identity Inversions in Male Furries, Adult Baby/Diaper Lovers, and Eunuchs.” Hsu acknowledges advisor J. Michael Bailey; committee members Ray Blanchard, Renee Engeln, and Vijay Mittal; as well as Anne Lawrence, Galen Bodenhausen, Richard Zinbarg, Susan Mineka, Wendi Gardner, Marzena Nowicka, Paul Vasey, John Sylla, Gerulf Rieger, Debra Soh, James Morandini, Heather Hoffmann, and David Moskowitz.

.

Anti-trans activism

Hsu diagnoses the common attraction to trans women as a made-up disease called “gynandromorphophilia” (GAMP), which Hsu and colleagues describe as “sexual interest in gynandromorphs (GAMs; colloquially, shemales).” Hsu and conservative colleagues are the only people who publish medicalized and pornographic neologisms rather than using scientific and value-neutral terms used by ethical sexologists.

Hsu also diagnoses furries as “autozoophiles,” ageplay enthusiasts as “autopedophiles,” and many trans women as “autogynephiles.” Hsu has published on sex and gender minorities with David I. Miller and Allen Rosenthal. Hsu is one of the few “autogynephilia” activists under age 50.

Related people

Ethical controversies

FurFest ban and unauthorized intrusion

Hsu was barred from recruiting participants at Midwest FurFest in December 2013 by the organizers, but attended anyway and tried to talk to several furries about their sexuality.

Violative online survey

A complaint to Northwestern’s Institutional Review Board resulted in Hsu taking down an online survey. Matt Healy attempted to reason with Hsu before contacting Northwestern about a survey that the furry community and ethical furry researchers like Kathleen Gerbasi found concerning. Below is an excerpt from Healy’s complaint:

Kevin’s survey uses several trans slurs

Kevin’s survey uses very poor language. Furry has a large proportion of transgender people and genderqueer people – around one in four based on the data I have seen – people who are vulnerable and sensitive to poorly-chosen language.

Kevin’s survey most egregiously uses the offensive term “shemale”, and also uses terms like “transsexual” in ways that would be considered passe or problematic by people active in the area of queer politics. There are many of such people within furry.

When pressed, Kevin countered that “shemale” is acceptable because it is “used in professional literature.” He cited me two examples: one from [Ray Blanchard and Peter Collins in] 1993, the other from 2011. I reviewed the 2011 (Escoffier) paper, in which “shemale” is only used as a descriptor for a mainstream pornography category. Kevin’s use of this paper as a rationalization strikes me as either disingenuous or willfully misleading. His willingness to defend offensive terminology on specious grounds is consistent based on my conversations with him.

I advised him to use the GLAAD media guidelines as reference for appropriate use of language. Kevin replied: “The GLAAD guidelines are merely guidelines, and they are catered to the media, which we are not. They don’t dictate the discourse in academia, research, or really anything.”

Healy (2015)

Unethical “sissy” survey

Hsu often presents cherry-picked data in an attempt to prove pet ideologies like “autogynephilia.” In 2021, Hsu began promoting a sex survey on non-representative gender diverse forums primarily associated with the sissy community and with “autogynephilia” activists:

Broadly speaking, we are hoping to better understand how gender, sexuality, mental health, personality, attitudes, and relationships intersect with one another in cross-dresser, transfeminine, and other communities (e.g., sissy), and how they might change over time. 

When questioned about the obvious bias in the sampling methodology, Hsu said:

Thank you for raising these concerns. We agree that recruiting from only those subreddits that you mentioned would not capture the wide range of experiences within cross-dressing and transfeminine communities. We do plan to recruit not only from more cross-dresser communities online, but also transfeminine communities as well. We hope to recruit as much of a representative sample of cross-dresser and transfeminine people as possible; if we fall short of that for whatever reason, we can assure that we will be transparent about the limitations of the sample and generalizing of the results.

When questioned another time, Hsu claimed:

We fully intend to post advertisements on and recruit from many other subreddits, forums, and communities to ensure a wide range of participants are included in the study. We have just not had the chance to do that yet

That has not happened as of 2023. The subreddits Hsu contacted are:

  • askAGP
  • MEFetishism
  • TGandSissyRecovery
  • sissyology
  • sissyhypno
  • ForcedFeminization
  • Feminization
  • sissyplace
  • Sissy
  • Sissies
  • forcedfem
  • genderotica
  • gendertransformation
  • girlschool
  • SissyHeaven
  • SissificationProject
  • sissydressing
  • asiansissification

The project’s consent for research states at item 9: “Funds from the Conru Foundation will be used to support this research.”

Andrew Conru is the founder of AdultFriendFinder. Conru’s limited social media presence includes primarily interacting with people associated with the intellectual dark web and with signers of the Harper’s letter, including Dave Rubin, Eric Weinstein, James Lindsay, Tim Pool, and Katie Herzog (quoting Benjamin Boyce).

2025 “autogynephilia” meeting

In 2025, Hsu participated in a meeting with other key “autogynephilia” activists:

References

Healy M (May 4, 2015). Concerns over conduct of Northwestern sexology researcher. Flayrah. http://www.flayrah.com/6069/concerns-over-conduct-northwestern-sexology-researcher

Hsu KJ, Rosenthal AM, Miller DI, Bailey JM (2015). Who are gynandromorphophilic men? Characterizing men with sexual interest in transgender women. Psychological Medicine. 2016 Mar;46(4):819-27. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291715002317 Epub 2015 Oct 26.

Hsu KJ, Rosenthal AM, Bailey JM (2015). The psychometric structure of items assessing autogynephilia. Archives of Sexual Behavior 44, 1301-1312 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-014-0397-9

Hsu KJ, Rosenthal AM, Miller DI, Bailey JM (2015). Sexual Arousal Patterns of Autogynephilic Male Cross-Dressers. Archives of Sexual Behavior https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-016-0826-z

Rosenthal AM, Hsu KJ, Bailey JM (2017). Who are gynandromorphophilic men? An internet survey of men with sexual interest in transgender women. Archives of Sexual Behavior [17 Nov 2016, 46(1):255-264] 10.1007/s10508-016-0872-6

UIC College of Medicine (2019). Grand Rounds. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy: Theory and Clinical Applications. https://www.psych.uic.edu/event/psychdept-acceptance-and-commitment-therapy-theory-and-clinical-applications

Bailey JM (2019). How to Ruin Sex Research. Archives of Sexual Behavior May 2019, Volume 48, Issue 4, pp 1007–1011 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-019-1420-y

Hsu KJ, Bailey JM (2019). The “Furry” Phenomenon: Characterizing Sexual Orientation, Sexual Motivation, and Erotic Target Identity Inversions in Male Furries. Archives of Sexual Behavior 48, 1349–1369 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-018-1303-7

Bailey JM, Hsu KJ (2022). How Autogynephilic Are Natal Females? Archives of Sexual Behavior Oct;51(7):3311-3318 10.1007/s10508-022-02359-8

Bailey JM, Hsu KJ, Jang HH (2023). Elaborating and Testing Erotic Target Identity Inversion Theory in Three Paraphilic Samples. Archives of Sexual Behavior https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-023-02647-x

Resources

reddit (reddit.com)

X/Twitter (x.com)

Penn State Abington (abington.psu.edu)

LinkedIn (linkedin.com)

Note: In 2025, this site phased out AI illustrations after artist feedback. The previous illustration is here.

Thomas Steensma is a Dutch psychologist who researches gender diverse youth. Steensma’s research and clinical guidelines are frequently cited by anti-transgender extremists who reject affirmative models of care for young people seeking trans health services.

In 2022, Steensma attended a conference organized by anti-trans hate group Society for Evidence-Based Gender Medicine at Tampere University in Finland.

Steensma is also popular with anti-transgender activists for reporting high rates of “desistance” and “detransition.” Steensma co-authored a 2013 longitudinal study tracking 127 adolescents. approximately 37% continued with “gender dysphoria” (which they call “persisters”), while 63% did not (“desisters”) by age 15–16 .

Background

Thomas D. Steensma, works at the Department of Medical Psychology / Center of Expertise on Gender Dysphoria, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Steensma’s research is focused on people of all ages with gender incongruence. Steensma’s primary projects focus on treatment evaluation, psychosexual development and (gender) identity development (including non-binary gender identities). Steensma studied social and clinical psychology, and is trained as a child and adolescent health psychologist.

“Desistance” research

In a 2013 paper, Steensma and co-authors stated that 63% of adolescents included in the study “desisted”:

Between 2000 and 2008, 225 children (144 boys, 81 girls) were consecutively referred to the clinic. From
this sample, 127 adolescents were selected who were 15 years of age or older during the 4-year period of follow-up between 2008 and 2012. Of these adolescents, 47 adolescents (37%, 23 boys, 24 girls) were identified as persisters.

Because this is one of the highest “desistance” rates ever reported, anti-trans activists frequently cite this study. Critics have discussed methodological issues, particularly how to count people lost to follow-up / non-responders.

Press coverage

In 2018 KQED reported:

In Amsterdam, clinicians at the Center of Expertise on Gender Dysphoria are much more cautious about recommending social transitions because of the statistics on desistance. Thomas Steensma, a researcher and clinician at the center, acknowledges  these studies probably included some kids who would not be diagnosed with gender dysphoria today. Nevertheless, despite the problems with the way they classified children, “the only evidence I have from studies and reports in the literature  … is that not all transgender children will persist in their transgender identity,” Steensma said. ‘Why are we asking a child to conform to something that is not them because society hasn’t done its learning yet?’

In 2013, Steensma co-authored an oft-cited study that examined 127 adolescents, all of whom had displayed various levels of gender dysphoria as children. The researchers found that 80 of the children had desisted by the ages of 15 and 16. That works out to 63 percent of kids who basically stopped being transgender — a lower rate than in previous studies, but still a majority.

Some clinicians criticize this study, however, on methodological grounds, because the researchers defined anyone who did not return to their clinic as desisting. Fifty-two of the children classified as desistors or their parents did send back questionnaires showing the subjects’ present lack of gender dysphoria. But 28 neither responded nor could be tracked down.

Brooks (2018)

Coverage in anti-trans media

In 2020, Steensma co-authored research and overviews on how negative media coverage affects transgender youth and their access to care.

Anti-trans activists who cite Steensma include:

References

Gorcenski, Emily (May 4, 2021). Jesse Singal Still Got More Wrong Than He Thinks. https://emilygorcenski.com/post/jesse-singal-still-got-more-wrong-than-he-thinks/

Brooks, Jon (May 23, 2018). The Controversial Research on ‘Desistance’ in Transgender Youth. KQED https://www.kqed.org/futureofyou/441784/the-controversial-research-on-desistance-in-transgender-youth

Selected coverage in anti-trans press

Klotz, Frieda (May 20, 2024). Pediatric Transgender Care and the Contentious Rise of SEGM. Undark https://undark.org/2024/05/20/pediatric-transgender-care-contentious-segm/

Ryan, Benjamin (September 18, 2024). New Evidence Challenges Institutionalized Belief That Transgender Teens Become Transgender Adults, Undermining Core Defense of Medical Gender Transitions for Minors. New York Sun https://www.nysun.com/article/new-evidence-challenges-institutionalized-belief-that-transgender-teens-become-transgender-adults-undermining-core-defense-of-medical-gender-transitions-for-minors

Singal, Jesse (April 4, 2021). A (Sorta) Quick Response To The Errors In Emily Gorcenski’s Article, “Jesse Singal Got More Wrong Than He Thinks” (Updated). Singal-Minded https://jessesingal.substack.com/p/a-sorta-quick-response-to-the-errors

Lane, Bernard (March 17, 2021). Dutch expert warns on ‘blind adoption’ of puberty blockers. The Australian https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/dutch-expert-warns-on-blind-adoption-of-puberty-blockers/news-story/d235ce6ebe409e8efde979f1ae0739cc

Singal, Jesse (July 2018). When a Child Says She’s Trans. The Atlantic https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2018/07/when-a-child-says-shes-trans/561749/

Navarro, Danielle (May 6, 2018). Nevertheless, she desisted: A brief review of Steensma et al (2013). https://djnavarro.net/desistance-essay/

Singal, Jesse (March 27, 2018). A Lot of People, Myself Included, Have Been Misreading the Single Biggest Published Study on Childhood Gender Dysphoria Desistance and Persistence — It Offers Stronger Evidence for Desistance Than We Thought. Medium https://medium.com/@jesse.singal/everyone-myself-included-has-been-misreading-the-single-biggest-study-on-childhood-gender-8b6b3d82dcf3

Selected publications by Steensma

van Dijken, J. B., Steensma, T. D., Wensing-Kruger, S. A., den Heijer, M., & Dreijerink, K. M. A. (2023). Tailored Gender-Affirming Hormone Treatment in Nonbinary Transgender Individuals: A Retrospective Study in a Referral Center Cohort. Transgender Health, 8(3), 220–225. https://doi.org/10.1089/trgh.2021.0032

van der Loos, M. A. T. C., Klink, D. T., Hannema, S. E., Bruinsma, S., Steensma, T. D., Kreukels, B. P. C., Cohen-Kettenis, P. T., de Vries, A. L. C., den Heijer, M., & Wiepjes, C. M. (2023). Children and adolescents in the Amsterdam Cohort of Gender Dysphoria: trends in diagnostic- and treatment trajectories during the first 20 years of the Dutch Protocol. The Journal of Sexual Medicine, 20(3), 398–409. https://doi.org/10.1093/jsxmed/qdac029

Pang, K. C., Hoq, M., & Steensma, T. D. (2022). Negative Media Coverage as a Barrier to Accessing Care for Transgender Children and Adolescents. JAMA Network Open, 5(2), e2138623. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.38623

  • Pang, K. C., de Graaf, N. M., Chew, D., Hoq, M., Keith, D. R., Carmichael, P., & Steensma, T. D. (2020). Association of Media Coverage of Transgender and Gender Diverse Issues With Rates of Referral of Transgender Children and Adolescents to Specialist Gender Clinics in the UK and Australia. JAMA Network Open, 3(7), e2011161. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.11161
  • Indremo, M., Jodensvi, A. C., Arinell, H., Isaksson, J., & Papadopoulos, F. C. (2022). Association of Media Coverage on Transgender Health With Referrals to Child and Adolescent Gender Identity Clinics in Sweden. JAMA Network Open, 5(2), e2146531. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.46531
  • Chong, L. S. H., Kerklaan, J., Clarke, S., Kohn, M., Baumgart, A., Guha, C., Tunnicliffe, D. J., Hanson, C. S., Craig, J. C., & Tong, A. (2021). Experiences and Perspectives of Transgender Youths in Accessing Health Care. JAMA Pediatrics, 175(11), 1159. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2021.2061
  • Pham, A., Morgan, A. R., Kerman, H., Albertson, K., Crouch, J. M., Inwards-Breland, D. J., Ahrens, K. R., & Salehi, P. (2020). How Are Transgender and Gender Nonconforming Youth Affected by the News? A Qualitative Study. Journal of Adolescent Health, 66(4), 478–483. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2019.11.304
  • Hughto, J. M. W., Pletta, D., Gordon, L., Cahill, S., Mimiaga, M. J., & Reisner, S. L. (2021). Negative Transgender-Related Media Messages Are Associated with Adverse Mental Health Outcomes in a Multistate Study of Transgender Adults. LGBT Health, 8(1), 32–41. https://doi.org/10.1089/lgbt.2020.0279

Wensing-Kruger SA , Nes L, Steensma TD (2022). Genderdysforie. Het lichaam en psychisch functioneren, 261-277 2022 https://mijn.bsl.nl/genderdysforie/19783376

Bungener, S. L., Post, L., Berends, I., Steensma, T. D., de Vries ALC, & Popma, A. (2022). Talking About Sexuality with Youth: A Taboo in Psychiatry? The Journal of Sexual Medicine, 19(3), 421–429. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsxm.2022.01.001

Van Mello, N., De Nie, I., Asseler, J., Arnoldussen, M., Steensma, T., Den Heijer, M., de Vries ALC, & Huirne, J. (2022). P-506 Reflecting on the Importance of Family Building and Fertility Preservation: Transgender People’s Experiences with Starting Gender-affirming Treatment as Adolescent. Human Reproduction, 37(Supplement_1). https://doi.org/10.1093/humrep/deac107.469

Arnoldussen, M., van der Miesen, A. I. R., Elzinga, W. S., Alberse, A.-M. E., Popma, A., Steensma, T. D., de Vries ALC(2022). Self-Perception of Transgender Adolescents After Gender-Affirming Treatment: A Follow-Up Study into Young Adulthood. LGBT Health, 9(4), 238–246. https://doi.org/10.1089/lgbt.2020.0494

de Rooij, F. P. W., van der Sluis, W. B., Ronkes, B. L., Steensma, T. D., Al-Tamimi, M., van Moorselaar, R. J. A., Bouman, M.-B., & Pigot, G. L. S. (2022). MP20-09 Comparison of clinical outcomes after phalloplasty with versus without urethral lengthening in transgender men. Journal of Urology, 207(Supplement 5). https://doi.org/10.1097/ju.0000000000002553.09

van der Vaart, L. R., Verveen, A., Bos, H. M., van Rooij, F. B., & Steensma, T. D. (2022). Differences in self-perception and social gender status in children with gender incongruence. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 27(4), 1077–1090. https://doi.org/10.1177/13591045221099394

de Rooij, F. P. W., van der Sluis, W. B., Ronkes, B. L., Steensma, T. D., Al-Tamimi, M., van Moorselaar, R. J. A., Bouman, M.-B., & Pigot, G. L. S. (2022). Comparison of surgical outcomes and urinary functioning after phalloplasty with versus without urethral lengthening in transgender men. International Journal of Transgender Health, 24(4), 487–498. https://doi.org/10.1080/26895269.2022.2110548

van der Sluis, W. B., Bruin, R. J. M. de, Steensma, T. D., & Bouman, M.-B. (2021). Gender-affirmation surgery and bariatric surgery in transgender individuals in The Netherlands: Considerations, surgical techniques and outcomes. International Journal of Transgender Health, 23(3), 355–361. https://doi.org/10.1080/26895269.2021.1890302

de Graaf, N. M., Huisman, B., Cohen-Kettenis, P. T., Twist, J., Hage, K., Carmichael, P., Kreukels, B. P. C., & Steensma, T. D. (2021). Psychological Functioning in Non-binary Identifying Adolescents and Adults. Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy, 47(8), 773–784. https://doi.org/10.1080/0092623x.2021.1950087

van der Sluis, W. B., de Nie, I., Steensma, T. D., van Mello, N. M., Lissenberg-Witte, B. I., & Bouman, M.-B. (2021). Surgical and demographic trends in genital gender-affirming surgery in transgender women: 40 years of experience in Amsterdam. British Journal of Surgery, 109(1), 8–11. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjs/znab213

Kennedy, E., Lane, C., Stynes, H., Ranieri, V., Spinner, L., Carmichael, P., Omar, R., Vickerstaff, V., Hunter, R., Senior, R., Butler, G., Baron-Cohen, S., de Graaf, N., Steensma, T. D., de Vries ALC, Young, B., & King, M. (2021). Longitudinal Outcomes of Gender Identity in Children (LOGIC): study protocol for a retrospective analysis of the characteristics and outcomes of children referred to specialist gender services in the UK and the Netherlands. BMJ Open, 11(11), e054895. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2021-054895

Verveen, A., Kreukels, B. P., de Graaf, N. M., & Steensma, T. D. (2021). Body image in children with gender incongruence. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 26(3), 839–854. https://doi.org/10.1177/13591045211000797

MJA Verbeek, MA Hommes, TD Steensma, AER Bos, J van Lankveld (2021). Transgender specific problem situations experienced during transition: Development of a Transgender Coping Questionnaire part 1. 4th EPATH Hybrid Conference: Reconnecting and Redefining Transgender Healthcare 2021 https://epath.eu/past-conferences/conference-2021/

Castellini G, Ristori J, Steensma T (2021). Psychopathology in adult transgender people. European Psychiatry. 2021;64(S1):S47-S47. https://doi.org/10.1192/j.eurpsy.2021.151

de Vries ALC, Beek, T. F., Dhondt, K., de Vet, H. C. W., Cohen-Kettenis, P. T., Steensma, T. D., & Kreukels, B. P. C. (2021). Reliability and Clinical Utility of Gender Identity-Related Diagnoses: Comparisons Between the ICD-11, ICD-10, DSM-IV, and DSM-5. LGBT Health, 8(2), 133–142. https://doi.org/10.1089/lgbt.2020.0272

Spizzirri, G., Eufrásio, R., Lima, M.C.P. et al. (2021). Proportion of people identified as transgender and non-binary gender in Brazil. Sci Rep 11, 2240 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-81411-4

Claahsen – van der Grinten, H., Verhaak, C., Steensma, T., Middelberg, T., Roeffen, J., & Klink, D. (2020). Gender incongruence and gender dysphoria in childhood and adolescence—current insights in diagnostics, management, and follow-up. European Journal of Pediatrics, 180(5), 1349–1357. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00431-020-03906-y

Bungener, Sara. L., de Vries ALC, Popma, A., & Steensma, T. D. (2020). Sexual Experiences of Young Transgender Persons During and After Gender-Affirmative Treatment. Pediatrics, 146(6), e20191411. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2019-1411

de Graaf, N. M., Steensma, T. D., Carmichael, P., VanderLaan, D. P., Aitken, M., Cohen-Kettenis, P. T., de Vries ALC, Kreukels, B. P. C., Wasserman, L., Wood, H., Zucker KJ (2020). Suicidality in clinic-referred transgender adolescents. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 31(1), 67–83. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-020-01663-9

Steensma TD, Wensing-Kruger SA, Klink D (2017). How Should Physicians Help Gender-Transitioning Adolescents Consider Potential Iatrogenic Harms of Hormone Therapy? (2017). AMA Journal of Ethics, 19(8), 762–770. https://doi.org/10.1001/journalofethics.2017.19.8.ecas3-1708

Ristori, J., & Steensma, T. D. (2016). Gender dysphoria in childhood. International Review of Psychiatry, 28(1), 13–20. https://doi.org/10.3109/09540261.2015.1115754

de Vries ALC, Steensma, T.D., Cohen-Kettenis, P.T., VanderLaan DP, Zucker KJ (2016). Poor peer relations predict parent- and self-reported behavioral and emotional problems of adolescents with gender dysphoria: a cross-national, cross-clinic comparative analysis. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 25, 579–588 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-015-0764-7

Steensma TD, McGuire JK, Kreukels BPC, Beekman AJ, Cohen-Kettenis P.T (2013). Factors Associated With Desistence and Persistence of Childhood Gender Dysphoria: A Quantitative Follow-Up Study. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry (Vol. 52, Issue 6, pp. 582–590). Elsevier BV. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2013.03.016

  • Temple Newhook, J., Pyne, J., Winters, K., Feder, S., Holmes, C., Tosh, J., Sinnott, M.-L., Jamieson, A., & Pickett, S. (2018). A critical commentary on follow-up studies and “desistance” theories about transgender and gender-nonconforming children. International Journal of Transgenderism, 19(2), 212–224. https://doi.org/10.1080/15532739.2018.1456390
  • Zucker KJ (2018). The myth of persistence: Response to “A critical commentary on follow-up studies and ‘desistance’ theories about transgender and gender non-conforming children” by Temple Newhook et al. (2018). International Journal of Transgenderism, 19(2), 231–245. https://doi.org/10.1080/15532739.2018.1468293

de Vries ALC., McGuire, J. K., Steensma, T. D., Wagenaar, E. C. F., Doreleijers, T. A. H., Cohen-Kettenis, P. T. (2014). Young Adult Psychological Outcome After Puberty Suppression and Gender Reassignment. Pediatrics, 134(4), 696–704. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2013-2958

Steensma TD, Kreukels BPC, de Vries ALC, Cohen-Kettenes PT (2013). Gender identity development in adolescence. Hormones and Behavior, July 2013, 64(2) pp. 288-297. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yhbeh.2013.02.020

Steensma, T. D., Biemond, R., de Boer, F., Cohen-Kettenes PT (2011). Desisting and persisting gender dysphoria after childhood: A qualitative follow-up study. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 16(4), 499–516. https://doi.org/10.1177/1359104510378303

Media

Gender: A Wider Lens with Stella O’Malley, Sasha Ayad, Annelou de Vries, and Thomas Steensma (March 11, 2022). EPISODE 66 – Pioneers Series – Where it All Started: The Dutch Researchers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fISYeDL38tQ

Pedagogische en Onderwijswetenschappen (UvA) with Henny Bos and Thomas Steensma (Apr 14, 2021). Gender – Preventieve Jeugdhulp en Opvoeding. [Gender – Preventive Youth Care and Education] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jU5JweVHLeU

Resources

Amsterdam VUMC (research.vumc.nl/en)

ResearchGate (researchgate.net)

Google Scholar (scholar.google.com)

Note: In 2025, this site phased out AI illustrations after artist feedback. The previous illustration is here.

Gert Comfrey is an American therapist who identifies as nonbinary and queer. Comfrey specializes in marriage and family therapy issues that affect sex and gender minorities.

Background

Comfrey was born in November 1985, grew up in Central Pennsylvania, and was known by another name prior to adulthood.

Comfrey earned a bachelor’s degree from Elizabethtown College in 2008, then earned two master’s degrees; one from Vanderbilt Divinity School in 2010, and one from Trevecca Nazarene University in 2015.

In 2019 Comfrey was a panelist at the LGBT+ College Conference held at Middle Tennessee State University.

Comfrey opened a marriage and family therapy practice in Nashville, Tennessee in 2019:

I have extensive experience working with transgender clients and clients wanting to explore gender identity, along with letter-writing for gender affirming surgeries. I am also a trained Circle facilitator and have offered trainings to healthcare professionals, counseling interns, and students regarding best practices when working with queer clients.

Comfrey is known to many from an appearance in the 2022 anti-trans propaganda piece What Is a Woman? In it, Comfrey earnestly explains that sex and gender are more complicated than binaries, prompting interviewer Matt Walsh to ask about personal gender identity, “So how do I know?” Comfrey responds, “That question, when it’s asked with a lot of curiosity, that’s the beginning of a lot of people’s gender identity development journey.” Many people who enjoy Walsh’s incurious bad-faith tactics found the exchange entertaining.

References

2019 LGBT+ College Conference Schedule https://www.mtsu.edu/mtlambda/2019LGBTplusCCSchedule.php]

Media

Community Changers (May 27, 2022). DDC S3 Gert Comfrey: The LGBTQ+ Community. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xd4vlZCbAeM

Resources

Gert Comfrey (gertcomfrey.com)

Instagram (instagram.com)

Therapy Den (therapyden.com)

LinkedIn (linkedin.com)

Nashville Psychotherapy Institute (nashvillepsychotherapyinstitute.org)

Psychology Today (psychologytoday.com)