Category gender identity
Direct replacement of ‘sex’ with ‘gender’ in U.S. passport and Social Security policies
At the federal level, it is possible to change the sex on both your Social Security card and United States passport documents. The policies currently in effect require only a physician or psychiatrist’s attestation of “appropriate clinical treatment” (Social Security Administration) or “gender-related care” (U.S. passports). In both cases, gender is used in direct replacement […]
Excerpt: Delusions of Gender by Cordelia Fine
Chapter 17, pages 190-196: regarding the fallacy of gender-neutral parenting. _______________________ It’s made me think a lot more about genetic influence, she’s got two X chromosomes, and that somehow, I don’t know, because we don’t push the Barbie stuff at all, in fact I would prefer her not to have it… so I’m kind of […]
EXCERPTS FROM ‘Hormone troubles: Feminist analyses of contemporary neurosciences’
These excerpts from a recently released paper entitled Hormone troubles: Feminist analyses of contemporary neurosciences (doi: 10.1177/0306312713488843 Social Studies of Science October 2013 vol. 43 no. 5 780-791) represent several ways that sexist bias continues to undermine scientific research and analysis about the brain. One of the biggest problems is continued reliance on untested and unproven assumptions about causation between brain structure and […]
If “transwomen are women”…then what does being a woman mean?
The maxim “trans women are women” is a false equivalency that means at least three things. First, it means that being raised as girl from birth is not an important or relevant aspect of being a “woman” because one can be a woman without these formative experiences. Second, it means that having a female body is not an important or relevant aspect of being […]
A disparate impact analysis of gender’s social liability
A lot of people think gender is really cool. They might celebrate gender “diversity.” Or they might believe that legal protection for “gender identity” and “gender expression” is a fundamental human right because it is a shortcut for deconstructing sex stereotypes–it’s not. But at the very least, most people view gender as neutral. Harmless, really. […]
CHART! “Gender Identity” laws by state: definitions, citations, contexts
I made this excel spreadsheet of “gender identity” anti-discrimination legislation almost a year ago. I have hesitated to share it on the internet because there are surely errors (in the weblinks and citations if nothing else) and because IT SHOULD NOT BE RELIED UPON FOR LEGAL RESEARCH. But still, it’s pretty sweet and helps frame […]
DELAWARE joins MA and CT with “improper purpose” limitation on “gender identity” protections
Delaware joined 16 other US states this week by passing anti-discrimination protections for “gender identity.” The good news is that some reasonable limitations were added by eleventh hour amendment to the legislation. The central problem with “gender identity” legislation is still implicated by the definition itself because it directly overrides sex and is self-referential (gender is gender). Let’s take […]
Sex discrimination as legal strategy
Sex discrimination demands particular kinds of behavior from one sex, but prohibits the same behavior from the other sex.[i] For example, wearing dresses is ok, but only for females; engaging in sexual relations with females is ok, but only for males. Legal prohibition against sex discrimination encompasses the social policing of both homosexuality[ii] and sex-role (or gender) […]
STRANGE BEDFELLOWS? SEX, RELIGION, AND TRANSGENDER IDENTITY UNDER TITLE VII (excerpt)
This is an excerpt of Sue Landsittel’s article Strange Bedfellows? Sex, Religion, and Transgender Identity Under Title VII, 104 NW. U. L. REV. 1147 (2010). The full article can be read here. ____________________________________________________ IV. TALKING ABOUT “SEX” LIKE RELIGION Cases like Smith and Schroer demonstrate that courts are beginning to read Title VII in a more transgender-protective way. In doing so, […]
Sex matters. 