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“Phil Illy” / Phil Hutchinson and transgender people

“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.”

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)