I am the extremely proud ex-CEO of Mermaids – a charity that has helped thousands of young transgender people and their families in the UK and beyond. My simple mission with Mermaids was to make sure that every gender incongruent child, and their family, could live a life free from discrimination or pain. That has not changed and never will.
The UK is failing trans people of all ages, and those who are prejudiced are being given a platform to air views that are harmful, hateful and extremely dangerous.
The media complicity in this is shameful. Stories appear daily that spread misinformation and lies, regardless of the impact on the vulnerable young people at the heart of this matter.
I have been approached for comment by The Daily Telegraph on a piece they are publishing on the Tavistock and Mermaids, and I do not trust that they will accurately portray my view, so I am sharing my answers to the questions HERE.
GIDS has come under criticism for the service they have provided for transgender children. Over 8,000 young people are stuck on a waiting list with no hope of any kind of care, whilst talk of new services does not seem to be resulting in any meaningful change.
However, there have been many cases where young people have received excellent support from some of the clinicians at GIDS and I was then, and am now, more than happy to work collaboratively with the NHS to provide holistic care. Of course public and independent charities and support groups work with NHS services to support patients, why ever would they not?
In my work with GenderGP, I now have the privilege to be part of the medical care of transgender youth. This includes well established clinical protocols for medical intervention that saves lives.
- Puberty blockers when puberty is underway – whatever age that may be
- Gender-affirming hormones when the young person is ready to start puberty – whatever that age may be
- Gender-affirming surgery whenever the best time is for that individual
- Correction of gender on legal documentations such as passports
I am immensely proud of my life’s work supporting and advocating for transgender young people and I will not rest until they have the same opportunities that all children and young people deserve because it is their simple human right.
If you read the Daily Telegraph article, which I guess will not be kind and supportive of trans young people and their right to autonomy of their own bodies, please be aware that the reality is very different to what is being portrayed. Think about the young people who will suffer as a result of yet more misinformation and prejudice peddled by a media obsessed with pulling down trans people, especially trans women and youth. A media that is wilfully negligent and deliberately hostile, regardless of the harm caused.
As I have said in my response to The Telegraph, in time we will look back and consider the harm caused, and heave a sigh of relief that those times are now past. For now, we keep refusing to bow to prejudice and hate, and I will never stop standing up for trans and gender diverse people and their families, including those that I love who are also members of the community.
All my love to every one of you.
Susie xx