I saw this story in the paper today & to be perfeclty HONEST it could not have been handled any worse by the School in question. Seems like Tact went straight out of the window here, but don't take my word for it......have a wee look yourselves. It was all OVER the front page of the paper, but this is the sun we're talking about so its not suprising reallly


http://www.thesun.co.uk/s[...]rl.html


Lol xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Anna-Marie

Thanks for the link to this article Anna-Marie, I will pas it on over here.
One has to admire the courage of this child, and her parents, The school administration, also seems to be doing everything possible for this young girl to over come prejudice, and mockery from the student body.
Now on the other hand, this type of journalism would never be presented in such a manner, over here across the pond. Actually for myself it was quite exhilarating to read an editorial of this nature with such empathy towards the family, and also trying to help this girl assimilate into the school system with equity.
It maybe hard to conceive, that in this country ( U.S.) that piece of news would have been politically twisted, and censored to incite fear and hate by a media that is controlled by a few corporate conglomerates to satisfy an elite agenda. I won't go any farther with a view point,that would only start a political controversy, and this is not what this post is about.
..... http://www.corporations.org/media/ ......

Now, on a better note, this is off topic also, but in "The Sun", there was a link to a clothing outlet called "River Island." Is this outlet reputable? They have some fabulous fashions that are a must buy, a little pricey but worth it for this girl.
Thanks................Tammy

River Island is national chain of latest must-have fashions for the youngsters such as you...my boss's 15 year old daughter spends every penny there and then as the novelty wears off a week later she passes stuff onto 45 year old Mum LOL So my boss has a $110 handbag, $100 jacket etc courtesy of daughter...over here we'd say River island is above the cheap and cheerful and lots of stuff is more dressy to catch the teenager's eyes...
I prefer Marks and Spencers, Bon Marche and such that cater for the 'mature woman'...well apart from last week when I bought four items from Primark budget fashion chain stores...

It's amazing that we still see stroies like this in view of the Sex Discrimination and Hate Crime laws and the Human Rights privacy aspects too...but it seems the UK Gov'yt will never grow a backbone and tackle this newspaper...

on a practical note I refuse to believe the pupils all got tearful etc as I think at 12 the girls would be welll settled into their femaleness if not actually menstruating and the boys will be well into their puberties so I hardly think many of them will be worried about sudeenly feeling an urge to change...and like most of us did the child in question come across as a normal boy for the last few years? reaction would have been curiosity as I'm sure that every one of the children will have seen many years of sex change characters and stories in the news, television etc and as the vast majority of UK kids are addicted to Coronation Street they will be well aware of all the transphobic sniping thats gone on around Hayley...so I think this story is once again a desperate attempt to grab readers...

I think this is a terribly written article. You can guarantee with The Sun that we don’t know the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so we must read between the lines. Having said that, I actually would have expected even more sensationalism from them given a juicy story like this. Like Rose, I can’t believe that pupils were bursting into tears. Perhaps the situation was explained to the children so sensitively that there were tears of compassion, but we wouldn’t expect The Sun to put it that way…
If parents complained about not being told in advance, they need to get a grip, it’s not their problem; don’t they think it’s going to be more difficult for the child in question? Would it have really helped if the whole school had gone in armed with the knowledge of a trans child.
If buts and ands were pots and pans…. We don’t know what to believe with The Sun, so I shan’t speculate any more, but I will just say that I wish I had been allowed, and had to the courage to ask to start secondary school as a girl, and start hormones much earlier in life. I applaud the parents for knowing what is best for the child and acting accordingly, and I wish the child herself all the happiness she deserves. She certainly would not be happy enduring her school life as a boy.

River Island is pretty good stuff, I have some lovely dresses and skirts from there, and although it’s generally considered a younger person’s shop, I’ve often seen women more my age in there.
xx

I've read the story a couple of times now and question whether any of this is really unexpected. I think it was someone in Meredith's Tao forum thread that said transition is not for the faint of heart. No kidding, and obviously it applies to any age of the person transitioning. This is 2009, not 2049. We can dream and fantasize all we want that others will share the excitement of our transition, but right now in this period of time, it isn't going to happen.

If it bleeds it leads. People demand to know there are others out there that are worse off and the newspapers fill that demand. Reporters seek out witnesses to the story that will support the story they want to tell even if that view is the minority. This is nothing new in media, at least some are honest enough to call it their opinion.

As for the kid, we have discussed elsewhere that kids can be cruel, so in a school of 1000 students it reasonable to expect bullies. How long this girl will be tormented is anyone's guess, but the newness of the story will wear off. We can only hope that this gal has many of the traits Meredith mentioned in her Tao thread so she will have the strength to endure this time of adjustment.

As for the girl's parents, I think it is pretty cool they have chosen to jump in with both feet rather than dip their toes in to test the water. I think it is obvious to them that this change needs to be made early on ,not for the moment, but for the "future" of their child. This gal is so fortunate to have this kind of support from her parents. Lucky girl.

As for the school staff, they tried. This was not something you experience or practice for on a regular basis, so they did what they thought would help. In the long run it just may. Kid's are often immature(parents too) and we all have experienced looking back at a situation and realizing our parents or teachers probably were right about something at the time we thought otherwise. But for now the assembly probably was over the kids heads causing some confusion.

As for laws regarding discrimination, these are kids who often don't know, don't understand, or don't even care about laws at this stage of their life. Laws are only guidelines and are often challenged, as they should be. What prevents discrimination against one often discriminates against the other. We choose to see the side we are on as the one being discriminated against.

Hugs,
Marsha

What a brave girl! I wish I had been so brave when I was her age.

Of course, I don't think my parents would have been too understanding - especially my dad - a man's man.

When I was 5 I told them I wanted to be a girl. They laughed and ignored. At 12, it would have been a different matter.

Thanks for the info Rose,
I know this is off topic, but there are some events in the evening that I attend, that require a more fashion edge style.
Thanks again for the info .....Tammy

Sadly, there were a number of renditions of this story that were badly handled. Many continued, as this one did, to refer to her as a boy. This is the Age of Trans Education. Until it sinks in that We not They know how We should be talked about, it will continue. They have not taken the time and trouble to understand us that we have, of course. It would be unreasonable to expect it. For 90% of my life, I did not really have it worked out and I learn to see more clearly every day. As others pointed out, Sensationalism Sells.

There is some differentiation, though not necessarily in a good way. Stories that are negative use the terms crossdresser or transvestite (often incorrectly) to cover crime or psychologically unstable behavior. Today I saw one that described the suspect as having a "transvestite/transgender type face". Holy Cow! Anyone want to field THAT one? The mind boggles.....if one has one to boggle. The only positive thing is USUALLY transgender and transsexual are not used to report negative situations loosely, but only by more educated reporters.

One has to look at what would be printed in the UK verses the U.S. I see this story as reasonable press but that is my opinion. Now take a look at a few things that get press and air time in the U.S.
Now my question that I am trying to get at, is this typical conduct in the UK, as in the U.S.? I am trying to make a comparison, or maybe I am wrong ......Tammy

>>>>This one is not bad....
Nebraska Parents Allow Biological Son, 8, to Live as the Girl She ...
May 18, 2009 ... Parents of an 8-year-old transgendered child who insists on her ... Wrote another, "Children are taken form [sic] parents who will not allow ...
www.edgeboston.com/index.php?ch=news&sc... - Cached - Similar

>>>>>>now take a look at this, just a sample. Like I said, the media preach hate and fear. There have been apologies over this radio cast , but the damage has been done.
www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-rowe/krxq-sacramento-radio-hos_b_210637.html

>>>>>school risks from the TYRA
www.genderadvocates.org/Tyra/TYRARisk.html

Ladies--

I've said much on the other post in terms of this same issue. You'll find it here.

Something really needs to be done about these. What's next? A five year old?

I'm pretty well disgusted.

Luv 'n hugs,

Dr. Mina

I can only echo the toughts from the other similar thread. On the one hand, yes, it's great that this person is having the support from her parents to transition, but I still can't help but feel that it is still young.

To be fair though, I think that by 12-13, and particularly as those hormones start to kick in, you know what gender you want to be and it is probably a good time to change, before the male hormones get too much of a hold.

This child is probably on an 'RLE' so to speak, to see if it's what she really wants.

Nikki

Now there's an interesting concept. RLE for a child.

At least here in the States, part of the RLE has to do with living, working, getting ID, etc. in the new gender. Getting a new school ID is usually a matter of paying the fine/fee and they'll take a new one. SInce a child's work is school (and/or play, per Piaget) the RLE would almost certainly have to be through the school. The living part would definitely require the cooperation of the parents at home.

In some cases that could be a scary thought--it falls outside the "standardized test" subroutine that schools have fallen into due to no child left behind. It certainly opens a can of worms for the school and/or school district (think potential lawsuits here from other disgruntled parents, now worried about their children going "that way") but would force the parents of the child to take an active role in the raising of the child. That could have some benefit, perhaps.

But, I still come back to the bullying aspect. Kids an be cruel, and if this little transkid runs afoul of an older child...there will very definitely be trouble. I remember all too well getting the crap beat out of me, on a pretty consistent basis. (In fact, I have been known to refer to the years 1977-1983 as my "black and blue period", for good reason. Guys were getting male hormones in that I wasn't.)

Speaking of hormones, another thought: What if the schools determined (for those of us here today) back in second or third grade that we were supposed to be little girls instead of little boys, and forced the issue on our parents? How would that have affected who we are today? Would we all be well adjusted women? Where would this forum be?

**giggles**

I can just see the school nurse coming around, making sure we took our daily dose of hormones today. (You wouldn't be allowed to keep them on your own--they are a controlled substance, after all!) Maybe they could make them fruit flavored and chewable, for those under ten-twelve or so. Cartoon shaped, even. (Jane Jetson, Wilma Flintstone, etc.?)

**More serious tone again**

If my school(s) had done that to/for me, my parents would have sued the pants off of everyone in sight, I'm afraid. As I said before--I knew I was wholly other, but really didn't have a grasp on that until I was in high school--and even then, didn't really want to "go there."

As an informed adult, I "go there" willingly and then some.

Luv 'n hugs,

Dr. Mina