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.
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]
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]
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
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.
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.”
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.”
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 Behaviorhttps://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
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 Behaviorhttps://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-023-02647-x
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.
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.
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
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 2021https://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 Rep11, 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
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 Psychiatry25, 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
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
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
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]
Randi Ettner is an American psychologist and author known for affirming work with transgender and gender diverse people.
Background
Randi Joy (Cahan) Ettner was born in 1952 in Lincolnwood, Illinois. Ettner’s aunt was noted sexologist Leah Cahan Schaefer. Ettner earned a bachelor’s degree from Indiana University, followed by a master’s degree from Roosevelt University.
Ettner began working with transgender people in 1977 at Cook County Hospital in Chicago, Illinois. Ettner received a doctorate in psychology at Northwestern University, with a dissertation on childbirth. Ettner had additional training at Moray House School of Education in Scotland.
Ettner is founder of New Health Foundation Worldwide and works with spouse Frederic M. “Fred” Ettner, a physician.
Ettner has helped pass anti-discrimination laws, provided testimony on behalf of trans people seeking workplace rights, and works to secure appropriate treatment for prisoners. Ettner has also been a critic of psychologist J. Michael Bailey‘s 2003 book The Man Who Would Be Queen. Bailey claims the book was initially motivated by “gross inaccuracies in Ettner’s account of transsexualism.” Ettner works to improve understanding of trans issues, and has spoken out against attitudes used to justify violence against trans people.
Below is a clip from a 2006 interview I did with Dr. Ettner on coming out.
Publications
Cahan RJ (1976). A Psychology Internship: Cook County Hospital. Roosevelt University
Ettner R (1979). Childbirth at Home: A Preliminary Attempt to Predict Dysfunctional Labor. Northwestern University
Ettner R (1996). Confessions of a Gender Defender: A Psychologist’s Reflections on Life Among the Transgendered. Chicago Spectrum Press, ISBN 9781886094512
Ettner R (1999). Gender Loving Care: A Guide to Counseling Gender-variant Clients. W.W. Norton & Co. ISBN 9780393703047, W W Norton page
Ettner R (2002). Book Review: Sex, Gender & Sexuality: 21st Century Transformations. By Tracie O’Keefe. Archives of Sexual Behavior Volume 31, Number 2 / April, 2002.
Ettner R, Harima K, King D, Landen M, Nodin Ñ, VP (2003). Transgender and Transsexuality. In Ember CR, Ember M (eds.). Encyclopedia of Sex and Gender: Men and Women in the World’s Cultures. Springer, ISBN 9780306477706
White T, Ettner R (2004). Disclosure, Risks and Protective Factors for Children Whose Parents Are Undergoing a Gender. Journal of Gay and Lesbian Psychotherapy, 8 (1/2), 129-145.
White T, Ettner R (2004). Disclosure, risks, and protective factors for children whose parents are undergoing a gender transition. In Leli U, Drescher J (eds.) Transgender Subjectivities: A Clinician’s Guide. Haworth Press ISBN 9780789025760
Ettner R, White T, Brown GR, Shah BJ (2006). Client Aggression Towards Therapists: Is It More or Less Likely with Transgendered Clients? International Journal of Transgenderism, 2006, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 1–7.
White T, Ettner R (2007). Adaptation and adjustment in children of transsexual parents. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 2007, vol. 16, no. 4, pp. 215–221.
Ettner R, Monstrey S, Eyler AE (2007). Principles of Transgender Medicine and Surgery. Haworth Press, ISBN 9780789032683
References
Staff report (August 28, 1977). Randi Joy Cahan is engaged to Dr. Frederic Mark Ettner. New York Times
Lieberman AB (1992). Easing Labor Pain. Harvard Common Press, ISBN 9781558320437 p. 170
Marilynn Marchione (August 14, 1995). Small Neenah hospital a leader in sex changes. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Staff (Oct 22, 2007). Experts testify in case for hormones in prison. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Rodkin, Dennis (2003). Sex and Transsexuals. Chicago Reader
Dreger AD (2008). The controversy surrounding The Man Who Would Be Queen: a case history of the politics of science, identity, and sex in the Internet age. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 2008 Jun;37(3):366-421.
Deardorff, Julie (March 22, 2001). Gender conflicts are given a clear place of study. Chicago Tribune
Morning Edition (April 3, 2001). Profile: Center opens in Chicago to help promote understanding of transsexual issues. National Public Radio
Beyer earned a bachelor’s degree from Cornell University in 1974 and a medical degree from University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in 1978. Beyer practiced as an eye surgeon before going into activism and politics.
Beyer ran three unsuccessful campaigns for public office in Maryland: State Delegate in 2010, and State Senator in 2014 and 2018. Beyer’s bid in 2014 against gay incumbent Richard Madaleno led to criticism from some local LGBT activists.
Trans activism
Beyer was involved in protests of the transphobic 2003 book The Man Who Would Be Queen. Beyer was a participant in our 2004 all-transgender benefit perfomance of Eve Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues, performing a piece with fellow physicians Becky Allison and Marci Bowers.
Beyers was part of the DSM-V Task Force for “gender identity disorder,” which was renamed “gender dysphoria” in 2012.
From 2012 to 2017, Beyer wrote many articles on timely trans topics on HuffPost, including an interview with activist Riki Wilchins, a profile of sexologist Milton Diamond, and an obituary for trans-supportive therapist Leah Schaefer. Beyers also criticized Alice Dreger’s attempt to rehabilitate J. Michael Bailey’s reputation in Galileo’s Middle Finger, noting the difference in Lambda Literary Foundation’s response to criticism of their nomination process in 2004 and 2015.
Philanthropic work includes Gender Rights Maryland and Equality Maryland. Beyers served on the board of A Wider Bridge, the North American organization which promotes LGBTQ inclusion in Israel and equality for Israel. Beyer also served as Regional Advocacy Chair for J Street, a national organization which advocates for diplomacy with Israel and a peaceful two-state solution.
Beyer was inducted into the Montgomery County Human Rights Hall of Fame in 2014. Some local LGBT activists protested the selection, including Somerset Mayor Jeffrey Slavin and Equality Maryland Executive Director Carrie Evans.
Ever since the trans community grew into its activism during the 90s, and began to include more than just transsexual persons (those who transition with medical and surgical treatment), the issue of who falls under the umbrella has grown. I myself wrote about this in a column in 2013, and the controversy has waxed and waned. Now, I believe the growth in the non-binary movement is the greatest challenge to our internal cohesion.
In a 2024 conversation with Josh Szeps, the show notes say:
“Transsexual” sounds like an old-fashioned term. But it describes a real medical condition in which your brain has the opposite sex from your body. Are transsexuals threatened by newer gender-queer, non-binary theories of sex? Dr Dana Beyer says so. She’s one of the most influential and effective trans activists in history. A medical doctor and self-described transsexual, she’s been striding the hallways of power since the 1970s meeting with the likes of Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden to achieve landmark wins for LGBT rights. Today, she believes modern gender theory is harming transsexuals like herself.
Lavers, Michael K. (October 14, 2014). Honor for trans activist sparks controversy.Washington Blade https://www.washingtonblade.com/2014/10/14/beyer-induction-md-county-hall-fame-sparks-controversy/
Beyer, Dana (June 23, 2017). Are There Too Many Ribs in the Trans Umbrella?HuffPost https://www.huffpost.com/entry/are-there-too-many-ribs-in-the-trans-umbrella_b_594d6060e4b0c85b96c6590f
alt url: digitaltransgenderarchive.net/files/dn39x1845
Scott Barry Kaufman is an American psychologist who frequently platforms anti-transgender activists and people associated with the intellectual dark web, a gateway to the far right. Kaufman also platforms academics who promote evolutionary psychology, an ideology frequently opposed to value-neutral scientific conceptualizations of trans and gender diverse people.
Ever since a graduate thesis on the subject, Kaufman been invested in misusing science to maintain and justify sex categories and sex segregation, in the way that race science has been misused to maintain and justify racial categories and segregation. Academic sex segregationists have staked their careers and legacies on defending the few remaining sex-segregated institutions.
Kaufman objects to being listed on this site, saying, “I try every day to do good in the world and have never done anything damaging to trans people.”
Background
Scott Barry Kaufman was born June 3, 1979 to Barbara Alpert (born ~1956), a professor of medicine, and Michael Stephen Kaufman (born ~1954), a lawyer specializing in mergers and acquisitions. Both parents went to Harvard and were from families of high social standing.
Kaufman earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Carnegie Mellon University, followed by a master’s degree from Cambridge. Kaufman’s 2007 master’s thesis was titled “Sex differences in mental rotation and spatial visualization ability: Can they be accounted for by differences in working memory capacity?” Kaufman then earned a doctorate in cognitive psychology from Yale, with a research focus on intelligence.
After personally experiencing challenges in early formal education, much of Kaufman’s work involves helping children realize their full potential. Kaufman has authored, co-authored, edited, and contributed to several books for a lay audience:
The Psychology of Creative Writing (2009)
Ungifted: Intelligence Redefined (2013)
Mating Intelligence Unleashed: The Role of the Mind in Sex, Dating, and Love (2013)
The Complexity of Greatness: Beyond Talent or Practice (2013)
The Philosophy of Creativity: New Essays (2014)
Wired to Create: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Creative Mind (2015)
Twice Exceptional: Supporting and Educating Bright and Creative Students with Learning Difficulties (2018)
Transcend: The New Science of Self-Actualization (2020)
Learned Hopefulness: The Power of Positivity to Overcome Depression (2020)
Choose Growth: A Workbook for Transcending Trauma, Fear, and Self-Doubt (2022)
The Psychology Podcast
Kaufman hosts The Psychology Podcast and has consistently platformed gender-critical and anti-transgender guests, including:
In December 2022, Kaufman outlined agreement with anti-trans activist Jesse Singal about disagreements:
My friend @jessesingal convinced me that the following is probably true: “People look at someone’s behavior, and then, based on how much it outrages them, they decide whether to attribute it to personal shortcomings (their fault) or mental illness (not their fault).”
In 2022, Kaufman expressed an interest in a “debate” on trans issues and trans rights.
Who would you like to see have a respectful, healthy debate about trans issues and trans rights? I'd love some suggestions of reputable evidence-based experts who have differing viewpoints. I will moderate this on @psychpodcast. Thanks!
Who would you like to see have a respectful, healthy debate about trans issues and trans rights? I’d love some suggestions of reputable evidence-based experts who have differing viewpoints. I will moderate this on @psychpodcast. Thanks!
When I asked Kaufman to provide more details on which rights for trans people should be debated, Kaufman said, “I’m afraid I don’t have the time to respond to your questions. I am extremely busy.”
If a podcaster consistently platformed antisemitic guests then suddenly wanted to have a “respectful healthy debate on Jewish issues and Jewish rights,” Kaufman would probably have a few questions. It’s also interesting that none of Kaufman’s gender critical guests appeared with someone who had opposing views.
Psychology is one of the key ways the state exerts social control on trans people. Academic exploitation of sex and gender minorities is well documented. People like Kaufman perpetuate these oppressive systems, probably unintentionally. It’s what biologist Julia Serano calls “trans unaware” and “trans suspicious” thinking.
In 2023, Kaufman released a series of podcast episodes on sex and gender. The episode titles reflect Kaufman’s anti-trans bias. Episodes Kaufman calls “science” are by gender critical people who have similar conservative views.
Kaufman chose not to use science to describe the episode with noted biologist/geneticist Anne Fausto-Sterling, even though Fausto-Sterling is by far the most notable and accomplished scientist Kaufman interviewed. That’s because Fausto-Sterling’s views are informed by the latest in scientific understanding of sex and gender and not Kaufman’s own biased views.
Episode list
“What we get wrong about transgender people” with Aaron Rabinowitz and Callie Wright
a decent introductory discussion about minutiae that ignores larger systemic issues
“The Science of Testosterone” with activist Carole Hooven
This one is just a bunch of conservative people agreeing with each other about evolutionary psychology
“Gender/Sex and the Body” with biologist/geneticist Anne Fausto-Sterling
This is the only one worth listening to
References
Kaufman SB (2007). Sex differences in mental rotation and spatial visualization ability: Can they be accounted for by differences in working memory capacity? Intelligencehttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.intell.2006.07.009
Kaufman says this quote exemplifies the psychologist’s views on trans people:
You tweeted something this morning that caught me. You were talking about a study that was showing how hard it must be to be a transgender person because you walk through the world and the entire world has evolved to really only see two gender identities in this. So it’s like a millisecond in our evolutionary perspective. We just don’t quite have the ability to see them they way they see themselves.
Daum co-hosts the podcast A Special Place In Hell with Sarah Haider.
Daum published the essay collections My Misspent Youth and The Unspeakable: And Other Subjects of Discussion. Daum’s work has appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine, The Atlantic, Vogue, GQ, and Harper’s.
Daum authored the book The Problem With Everything: My Journey Through The New Culture Wars.
Comments on Leelah Alcorn’s suicide
In 2018, Daum expressed what many felt was more sympathy for Leelah Alcorn’s unsupportive parents than for the dead teen.
“There’s no question that Leelah’s death and the circumstances leading to it are worthy of—and, in fact, demand— public rage. But along with that rage should come compassion, not just for the Alcorns but for anyone who’s ever been slow to reach acceptance, or whose circumscribed worldview has clouded their understanding of somebody else’s experience.”
References
Daum, Meghan (August 24, 2018). Nuance: A Love Story.GEN https://gen.medium.com/nuance-a-love-story-ae6a14991059
