Respectful Living: Elusive As Ever
Humanity might be capable, but do we have the conviction?
Grasping the full context of what transgender youth and adults have to live through in their daily existence will always be a barrier to those outside. Whether it be the supporters or the naysayers, without being transgender it is difficult to understand what transgender folk need.
To be honest, most of us don’t know. What we do know is that we need to be ourselves first. Plans and dreams we had living in our birth sex might not be the same as when we’re living authentically.
We see through surveys and questionnaires that the vast majority of transgender people suffer in some way. Abuse, bullying, discrimination, stress, anxiety, fear, suicide. We know that it isn’t being transgender that causes the suffering, it’s the negative outside influences which cause the suffering.
The Alberta Trans Youth Survey released in 2017 shows that many trans youth (age 14–25) face violence, discrimination and significant healthcare barriers.
“More than 80 per cent of trans teens surveyed said their family members did not understand them or only understood them a little, while almost one in three reported having run away from home…
Almost 70 per cent of those surveyed said they had…
