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Grace Lidinsky-Smith and transgender people

Grace Lidinsky-Smith is an “ex-transgender” activist. Lidinsky-Smith’s work has been cited by conservative psychologist Erica Anderson and others seeking to restrict access to healthcare for gender diverse youth and young adults.

Lidinsky-Smith is featured in the anti-trans propaganda piece Detransition Diaries, produced by the Center for Bioethics and Culture Network. Lidinsky-Smith was also featured in anti-trans segments by Tucker Carlson and Megyn Kelly. Lidinsky-Smith also appeared on podcasts with anti-trans activists Bridget Phetasy, Lesley Stahl, and Graham Linehan. Lidinsky-Smith was also featured in pieces by Emily Bazelon and Azeen Ghorayshi during the New York Times anti-transgender coverage crisis.

Background

Lidinsky-Smith “detransitioned” after making a gender transition as an adult that included hormones as well as top surgery with Sidhbh Gallagher.

Ex-trans activism

Lidinsky-Smith then became active in ex-trans organizations like Gender Care Consumer Advocacy Network (GCCAN).

In 2022, Patrick Hunter, Corinna Cohn, and Lidinsky-Smith submitted a proposed presentation to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. They planned to present and discuss work by Hunter, Kenneth Zucker, Riittakerttu Kaltiala, and Lisa Littman. It was rejected.

In 2022, Lidinsky-Smith was featured by both Azeen Ghorayshi and Emily Bazelon in the New York Times during their anti-trans coverage crisis.

In 2022, Lidinsky-Smith was featured in the anti-trans propaganda video The Detransition Diaries by Jennifer Lahl and Kallie Fell, as well as in their 2024 book by the same name.

In 2023, Lidinsky-Smith was featured in the anti-trans book Gender Madness by “Oli London.”

In the 2024 book Bad Ink: How The New York Times Sold Out Transgender Teens, Riki Wilchins noted that Azeen Ghorayshi included Lidinsky-Smith in a piece about teens choosing top surgery, even though Lidinsky-Smith was not a teen:

Ghorayshi also gratuitously introduced Grace Lidinsky-Smith, who transitioned as an adult at age 23 and then detransitioned later. So it turns out this cautionary tale is not about a minor and thus irrelevant to the topic at hand.

She didnā€™t bother to mention that Lidinsky-Smith is president of Gender Care Consumer Advocacy Network, an organization which promotes blanket bans on both youth and adult care, state monitoring of all affirming care, and malpractice lawsuits against care providers. GCCAN also claimed that top surgery is marketed ā€œlike cigarette companies used to market tobacco to children.ā€ā“ā¶ā¶ ā“ā¶ā· ā“ā¶āø ā“ā¶ā¹

Lidinsky-Smith was also featured on 60 Minutes, where Lesley Stahl briefly interviewed a single, unnamed happy trans teen before devoting the bulk of the segment to detransition and regret. She also did not disclose Lidinsky-Smithā€™s leadership of GCCAN.ā“ā·ā° ā“ā·Ā¹ ā“ā·Ā²

References

Serano, Julia (July 24, 2023). Spotting Anti-Trans Media Bias on Detransition. Medium https://juliaserano.medium.com/spotting-anti-trans-media-bias-on-detransition-a9a782a46894

Burns, Katelyn (March 1 2023). How Journalists Can Responsibly Report on Trans Kids. NBCU Academy https://nbcuacademy.com/trans-kids-journalism/

Hollar, Julie (June 23, 2022). NYT Centers Trans Healthcare Story on Doctorsā€”Not Trans People. FAIR https://fair.org/home/nyt-centers-trans-healthcare-story-on-doctors-not-trans-people/

Factora, James (May 25, 2021). DearĀ 60 Minutes, There Is No ā€œBoth Sides-Ingā€ Trans Healthcare. them https://www.them.us/story/60-minutes-platforms-detransitioners-trans-healthcare

Ellefson, Lindsey (May 24, 2021). GLAAD Slams ā€˜Shamefulā€™ ā€™60 Minutesā€™ Story on Transgender Youth. The Wrap https://www.thewrap.com/glaad-60-minutes-transgender-youth-cbs-news/

Sarnoff, Marisa (May 24, 2021). GLAAD Calls Out 60 Minutes for ā€˜Fearmongeringā€™ Segment With ā€˜Anti-Trans Dog Whistlesā€™ About Transgender Youth. Mediaite https://www.mediaite.com/media/tv/glaad-calls-out-60-minutes-for-fearmongering-segment-with-anti-trans-dog-whistles-about-transgender-youth/

Anti-trans coverage

Anllo, L. (2025). Challenges of Sexual Life after Detransition: Trauma, Disenfranchised Grief, and Unmet Needs. Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy, 51(6), 639ā€“651. https://doi.org/10.1080/0092623x.2025.2531167

Lahl, Jennifer; Fell, Kallie (2024). The Detransition Diaries. Ignatius Press, ISBN 978-1621646372

“London, Oli” (2023). Gender Madness: One Man’s Devastating Struggle with Woke Ideology and His Battle to Protect Children. Ā Skyhorse Publishing, ISBN 978-1510778061

Ferguson, Samuel D. (2023). Does God Care about Gender Identity? Crossway, ISBN 978-1433591150

Richards, Gillian (September 20, 2022). These 3 Women Tried Transgenderism, and Then Stopped. The Washington Stand https://washingtonstand.com/news/these-3-women-tried-transgenderism-and-then-stopped

Jackson,Ā Mary (October 6, 2022). ā€œOur voices can no longer be deniedā€: New films highlight the dangers of the transgender trend. World News Group https://wng.org/articles/our-voices-can-no-longer-be-denied-1664936820

Dreher, Rod (September 28, 2022). Gaslighting Mengeles Who Mutilate Kids. The American Conservative https://www.theamericanconservative.com/gaslighting-mengeles-who-mutilate-kids/

Ghorayshi, Azeen (September 26, 2022). More Trans Teens Are Choosing ā€˜Top Surgery.ā€™ New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/26/health/top-surgery-transgender-teenagers.html

Bazelon, Emily (June 15, 2022). The Battle Over Gender Therapy. New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/15/magazine/gender-therapy.html

James, Sharon (September 24, 2021). The Hidden Harm of Gender Transition. The Gospel Coalition https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/hidden-harm-gender-transition/

Stahl, Lesley (May 23, 2021). State bills would curtail health care for transgender youth. CBS News https://www.cbsnews.com/news/transgender-health-care-60-minutes-2021-05-23/

Jones, Kevin J. (June 29, 2021). ā€˜Gender transitionā€™ regret deserves a voice, says former patient. Catholic News Agency https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/248192/gender-transition-regret-deserves-a-voice-says-former-patient

Deese, Kaelan (May 27, 2021). Woman who spoke about detransition responds to ā€˜unfairā€™ backlash from transgender activists. Washington Examiner https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/2874426/woman-who-spoke-about-detransition-responds-to-unfair-backlash-from-transgender-activists/

Selected writing by Lidinsky-Smith

Lidinsky-Smith, Grace (June 25, 2021). There’s No Standard for Care When it Comes to Trans Medicine | Opinion Newsweek https://www.newsweek.com/theres-no-standard-care-when-it-comes-trans-medicine-opinion-1603450

(May 15, 2020). Interview with Dr. Lisa Littman.

Media

Megyn Kelly with Walt Heyer and Grace Lidinsky-Smith (August 4, 2022). Two Detransitioners Share How They Faced Backlash For Simply Sharing Their Stories. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNtKHlLjHCc

Walk-Ins Welcome with Bridget Phetasy and Grace Lidinsky-Smith (May 26, 2022). Grace Lidinsky-Smith Discusses The Gender Lens. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAKI07QavXk

Graham Linehan with Grace Lidinsky-Smith (March 10, 2022). Detrans Awareness Day. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LIM7uY1itE

Heterodorx with Corinna Cohn, Nina Paley, and Grace Lidinsjy-Smith (July 26, 2021). Episode 27: Americaā€™s Most Undercompensated Detranssexual with Grace Lidinsky-Smith. https://heterodorx.com/podcast/americas-most-undercompensated-detranssexual-with-grace-lidinsky-smith/

Stahl, Lesley (May 23, 2021). Health care challenges for transgender youth. CBS News https://www.cbsnews.com/video/transgender-health-care-60-minutes-video-2021-05-23/

Resources

X/Twitter (x.com)

Gender Care Consumer Advocacy Network (gccan.org) [archive]

  • Who We Are [archive]
  • gccan.org/who-we-are

YouTube (youtube.com)

Substack (substack.com)

Ravelry (ravelry.com)

Instagram (instagram.com)

IMDb (imdb.com)