Activists and community organizations are taking aim at an column reprinted in Chicago Sun-Times that suggested that actor Laverne Cox, who recently appeared on the cover of Time Magazine, "is not a woman."
The column, published May 30 by the Sun-Times, was written by Kevin D. Williamson and originally appeared in the conservative publication National Review. Besides questioning Cox's gender identity, the essay also posits that transgender persons are living in denial of the "reality" of the gender they were assigned at birth.
"Regardless of the question of whether he has had his genitals amputated, Cox is not a woman, but an effigy of a woman," Williamson writes. "Sex is a biological reality, and it is not subordinate to subjective impressions, no matter how intense those impressions are, how sincerely they are held, or how painful they make facing the biological facts of life. No hormone injection or surgical mutilation is sufficient to change that."
In a statement, representatives of GLAAD said that Williamson's commentary "is filled with falsehoods and inaccuracies about gender identity that ignore the expertise of credible medical and psychological health authorities. His essay is more than an ugly opinion, it's factually inaccurate."
"These harmful messages about the validity of transgender identity have no place in a credible mainstream publication," said GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis. "This ugly and insulting propaganda is dangerous to readers' understanding of who transgender people are."
Rich Ferraro, vice-president of communications and programs at GLAAD, said the organization has "additional actions" planned around the Williamson commentary.
Transgender writer Jen Richards on dailydot.com not only defended Cox, calling her a "a possibility model, not just for trans women of color, but to all who find themselves marginalized for who they are," but questioned why the Sun-Times, in publishing the piece, would diminish the contributions of several transgender Chicagoans as well.
"Does the Sun-Times wish to insult the dignity of people like billionaire businesswoman and philanthropist Jen Pritzker? Would it prefer that that most successful woman filmmaker in history, Lana Wachowski, take her studio elsewhere? Does it not want people like rock star Laura Jane Grace, ESPN contributor Christina Kahrl, MMA fighter Fallon Fox, and SAIC professor Mickey Mahoney to feel at home here?" asked Richards.
A change.org petition, asking Williamson to retract his statements, has been started; it can be found at: chn.ge/1h4uKvs .
Jen Richards' commentary is at: bit.ly/1km9lhY .
GLAAD's statement is below.
From GLAAD
The following was written by Ross Murray, director of news for GLAAD, and posted on their website June 2: www.glaad.org/blog/kevin-d-williamsons-anti-transgender-rant-featured-chicago-sun-times .
On Saturday, the Chicago Sun-Times featured a virulently anti-trans "op-ed" from Kevin D. Williamson, in which he referred to Laverne Cox and other trans women as "an effigy of a woman," repeatedly used incorrect pronouns to describe Laverne, and inaccurately stated that she is not a woman.
In addition to these offenses, his essay is filled with falsehoods and inaccuracies about gender identity that ignore the expertise of credible medical and psychological health authorities. His essay is more than an ugly opinion, it's factually inaccurate.
The op-ed originally ran in the National Review, a conservative website brimming with anti-LGBT claims and devoid of empirical evidence. The National Review is known for spreading lies about LGBT people, but why would theChicago Sun-Times reprint such an inaccurate and mean-spirited piece by someone who clearly has no knowledge or understanding of transgender people?
Since Williamson doesn't know what he's talking about, credible media outlets have the responsibility to check the facts. Here they are:
— He claims that the "phenomenon" of being transgender is a "modern one," but this statement is far from the truth. Transgender and gender non-conforming people have existed throughout history, in various parts of the world, by many names.
— Both the American Medical Association and the American Psychological Association have stated that trying to change a person's gender identity is no more successful than trying to change a person's sexual orientation. Not only does it fail, it can cause serious damage to the person attempting to make such an adjustment.
—There are ways of addressing gender dysphoria supported by the APA, which says it "recognizes the efficacy, benefit, and medical necessity of gender transition treatments for appropriately evaluated individuals and calls upon public and private insurers to cover these medically necessary treatments."
"These harmful messages about the validity of transgender identity have no place in a credible mainstream publication," said GLAAD President and CEO, Sarah Kate Ellis. "This ugly and insulting propaganda is dangerous to readers' understanding of who transgender people are."
GLAAD is in communication with the editors of the Chicago Sun-Times. Stay tuned for further updates.
[UPDATE from www.glaad.org/blog/chicago-sun-times-remove-grossly-inaccurate-op-ed-and-aplogizes:
Today, the Chicago Sun-Times removed an op-ed originally written for the National Review by Kevin D. Williamson, claiming that Laverne Cox is not a woman, and that transgender people are delusional.
