(Note: emphasis mine. Steve posted about Shaun Cooke here. -Skip]
*****
A friend of mine recently commented on a Union Leader piece on a “woman” (above)who was being sought after not returning to transitional housing. It was accompanied by a photo of a bald man in a T-shirt with a scruffy beard. She was laughing.
“Look at this photo. How could they make a mistake like that!” [see above picture -Skip]
I assured her it wasn’t a mistake, that in today’s world we are constrained to describe sex not in terms of biology or physical traits, but by the self-definition of the individual.
To describe her reaction as stunned would be an understatement. I found the heading of “Public Safety” above the article to be more than a little ironic.
Transitional housing is supposed to be a safe, supportive environment for all residents.
Is this served by categorizing and treating a male as a female?
Unfortunately, in today’s world, we are all admonished to ignore observable truth in favor of self-proclaimed reality, and it is that shifting and subjective “reality” that is driving all of our institutions and the “free” press.
But at least this individual is an adult. What about our children?
On the very same day this article appeared, the Union Leader published its own editorial critical of the Nashua school board’s recently passed policy regarding transgenderism, a policy which neatly cuts parents out of any right to be informed of their child’s decisions regarding their gender identity, even their name (don’t worry, school administrators have this).
This not only puts that child and their family at risk, but forces other children to share formerly gender-segregated facilities with someone of the opposite sex (as long as the student claims to be the opposite sex).
In our rush to affirm and “protect,” we are creating a potentially dangerous environment for all our children and citizens, in addition to violating personal bodily privacy.
Am I the only one who feels like the emperor has no clothes? What’s next?
By Shannon McGinley (Executive Director of Cornerstone Action and resides in Bedford.
