Transhausen by Proxy

Why are Oxford University working with Mermaids?

I have done two series on research into the experiences of parents of “trans” kids. The latest one was funded by Oxford University, amongst others, and endorsed by trans-activist Katie Montgomerie (GL: Why Montgomerie claims to be an expert on “trans kids”, when he transitioned as adult, is anyone’s guess)

The Project Advisory Panel reads like a who’s who of Trans Lobby groups, including Mermaids.

For this post, I want to focus on the mother of one of these so-called ‘trans children”; who is fond of referencing Mermaids. Let’s meet Georgina. It is parents like this for whom the phrase “transhausen by proxy” was coined.

Georgina’s daughter “came out” as trans while at primary school. Georgina says her “son” was expressing a diverse gender identity from three years old (sometimes she says age 4). How did she know? Her daughter liked sex stereotypical things associated with boys and the colour blue. Then she started to ask when she could go to the doctor’s to get “boy bits”. Georgina talks, a lot, about conflict with her ex-husband and the father of her child.

Finally, her daughter told her mum she wanted to “present to the world as she really was”. Georgina embraces this new identity with breathtaking speed. That night she put her little girl to bed knowing “he” would wake up in the morning. Once her daughter was safely tucked up in bed she searched for transgender support groups, joined a parent’s forum and made a checklist of all the things she needed to do. First on the list was to tell the school, which she did the very next day! By the end of the day her daughter was being addressed by a male name and pronouns. By the teachers and BEFORE the father was informed.

Also on Georgina’s check list was getting a referral to the Gender Identity Service (GIDs). She makes an appointment with her GP, immediately, and consults Mermaids, trans lobby group, for advice on how to ensure the doctor would comply with her wishes.

She needn’t have worried, the doctor was co-operative and her daughter was referred to GIDs with few questions asked. The doctor had to prompt Georgina to tell the father to avoid any trouble. Yes, she did all this without telling the dad. She explains that he was the last on the list for the actions she thought were important.

Georgina tells the interviewer that she was new to the issue of transgender children but she had read lots of magazines and watched a documentary by Louis Theroux. 🙄What she had actually done was respond to a marketing campaign.

She gets very emotional when describing the trans “rite” of cutting her daughter’s hair short.

Here she is frustrated with the therapist, for not asking the “right” questions, and her daughter, for not giving the right answers. Georgina knows how to elicit the “correct” responses. 🚩🚩🚩

Georgina prefers to use a tick box so her daughter can “choose” her adult body. This exercise calls to mind the phrase “Meat Lego” as these kids think your sex is a pick and mix. { “Meat Lego” was coined by Mary Harrington, writer for Unherd}.

The discord between the parents figures prominently Georgina’s narrative. The father does comply with the new name and pronouns and attends clinic appointments. However, his girlfriend is described as “transphobic” and Georgina worries he will be a barrier to medical intervention. I, on the other hand, hope he acts as a last line of defence for this little girl.

I am somewhat perturbed that this did not raise any red flags for the researchers. They were perfectly comfortable putting this in the public domain. This is in marked contrast to the treatment of a parent who was more “gender critical”; Elijah expresses concern about social and medical transition for his thirteen-year-old daughter. The researchers make their feelings about “Elijah” very clear by adding criticism/ caveats to make it clear they believed he was harming his child.

This is part of a thirteen part series. You can access the whole thing, complete with links to primary sources here. 👉: Parents of “transgender” children.