On Transgender Identity
I think that gender is the social and psychological dimension of sex in humans.1 Being a woman means being an adult of the female sex, and being a man means being an adult of the male sex. There is no third sex2 and therefore no third gender. This means that a transgender person does not actually change gender, but adopts the role and identity of the gender to which they are transitioning.
A “gender transition” may be caused by (or desired because of) a mental disorder3 (e.g. gender dysphoria), some sexual arousal pattern (e.g. autogynephilia4), or preferences.5 All of them are legitimate. Everyone has the right to express themselves socially in whatever lawful manner they please and have full ownership of their own body.6
The vast majority of controversies surrounding the transgender identity would vanish with the withdrawal of the state: no one would be forced to contribute, through their insurance, to the surgical transition of a person who may be driven by sexual arousal; no one would be forced to accept, or exclude, transgender women from the restrooms of their business or school.
Most of the remaining controversies are an artefact of the technical limitations of our time. If we could indeed change sex, as I believe we will likely be able to do in the future, the idea of gender as distinct from the social and psychological dimension of sex would dissolve.
As for my personal values, I would not want to associate with people who discriminate against, or express rejection toward, transgender individuals because of their identity, nor would I want to use pronouns they reject to refer to them. I believe that their existence is on net beneficial to the world, and I feel the same brotherly affection toward them as I do toward any other human being.
I still consider biological sex to be relevant in many contexts,7 particularly those related to safety and appropriateness.8 For example, I would not want my daughter to share a locker room at the swimming pool with adult males, even if they are transgender women.
I reject the notion that gender is a subjective feeling (one’s internal sense of being) or an empty label (anyone who identifies as). This is fallacious circular reasoning, an anti-definition.↩
There are only two gamete types: the small mobile sperm, and the large immobile egg, therefore there are only two sexes. Some individuals have variations in development (intersex conditions) but do not constitute a third sex. Variation in sex-linked traits can be continuous or bimodal without challenging the binary nature of sex.↩
Feeling like the other sex does not inherently mean one is suffering from a mental disorder. It only becomes so when it causes suffering and/or impairment.↩
Autogynephilia describes a male’s sexual arousal at the thought of himself as a female. It is not a mental disorder in and of itself but a paraphilia, which is a condition characterized by abnormal sexual desires.↩
By preferences, I am not referring only to arbitrary choices, but also to deep-seated inclinations that are part of a person’s identity but do not constitute mental disorders.↩
This is the principle of bodily autonomy, and its extension, morphological freedom.↩
I do not want my own personal preferences about it to be mandated by policy.↩
A person’s sex is a very strong predictor of their risk profile and pattern of behavior.↩