There are two facets to this, one following the other.

 

First, a female human is born with specific characteristics. They are identified by the XX chromosome at the most basic level, and they have all the reproductive organs that this entails: womb, vagina, fallopian tubes, ovaries, eggs, etc. These parts might all not work, or might not all be there, but this pattern is on the body of the human female. And this pattern leads to the possibility, if nothing else, of getting pregnant and giving birth. No other pattern is there, and this pattern does not show up in the other sex, the male.

Secondly, all of those parts and pieces, from the genetic structure to the primary and secondary sexual characteristics to their sex-linked behavior, are part of the creation of what becomes and constitutes a full-grown woman. The development of breasts (too big or too small, before anyone else or after), the first menses (again, first or last in a peer group, or never arriving), choosing to follow the path to motherhood, unable to conceive, the fear of being raped. All of these things, and so many others I could not even guess at, are what it means to be a woman. Not a girl, but a woman.

I have been with my wife for a few decades at this point. I know her better than literally any other person on the planet. And yet, on an almost daily basis, she will casually let slip a simple fact of her life that I could not even guess at, from how she wipes her ass to the very real fear she felt crossing the threshold of my apartment for the first time. And, unless I am specifically let into these secrets, I cannot know them, as, due to all of those things that constitute the formation of a fully grown woman, I have never experienced those things, will never experience them. One can look to the specifics of these actions and see why they are different, but that would be to get lost in the ever-expanding minutia of subtle differences between the sexes. Suffice to say that they are real, constant and ever expanding in their scope. And, further, one should be clear that there is nothing wrong with any of these differences, they don’t speak to one of the two sexes being lessor or greater, only different.

A man who feels that they were “born in the wrong body”, that they should be in a woman’s body, has never been subjected to these two defining aspects of womanhood. And, no matter how hard they try to imagine what life would be like under these physical tenets, they are only doing just that: imagining. Making believe. Fantasizing.

 

Gender dysphoria is real. It is in no way as common as certain segments of society would have you believe, but it is a fact that needs to be delt with as compassionately and honestly as is necessary. I cannot guess what is going on in any other person’s head, and so I try to take them at face value. If they feel that, for whatever reasons, they were born in the body of the wrong physical sex, then I will respect that and allow them to move toward whatever choice they make to alleviate the problems with this, which I imagine are quite profound as far as trying to live. This does not mean that they are now female (or vice versa, in the case of trans-men) and should be allowed to enjoy and be protected by all that society has to offer that sex. They are not entitled to women’s only spaces. They are not entitled to participate in women’s only events. They are not women. Indeed, we have these special spaces and events due to society knowing that there are differences between the two sexes. If, over the last few millennia we hadn’t had divisions like this we wouldn’t be at the crossroads we are at now. And this shows up in every single human society, this division of the sexes. If any society has a derivation from this, it is to add a third class of people, though this is rare enough to remark on when it happens.

But if, as often claimed, gender is a social construct, then any definition of it is correct, due to it’s not being based on scientific fact. Gender, consisting of only two, or Gender, consisting of multitudes. Both as valid in a socially constructed milieu. And to take that idea to it’s end state, no genders. Which, if we are honest with ourselves, was once the point of feminism. But we have shot that idea down, the idea that there are two sexes, and they should be equal before the law, and as we are willing to replace women with men at the drop of a hat, so to speak, why did we bother at all with that nonsense?

And thus, we start to see the knock-on effects of blurring the lines between the two sexes. Not only is it destroying the actual and long-acting effects of those who are attempting to elevate the position of women in society, but we see men, in all forms, taking over these movements, invading the spaces we have carved out for women so that they are not harmed by the greater physicality of men who have gone through puberty. Which is the effect of being born with the XY Chromosome.

Many states and countries now move any male inmate who identifies as a woman, no matter that they have taken zero steps to physically affirm this, into a women’s prison, with predicable results: rape and pregnancy. Women’s shelters, full of people who we have sworn to protect, women at their most vulnerable, are now housing men who identify as women. And no matter how you try to slice it, every single one of these men has gone through puberty and has the corresponding effects upon their body.  Women’s sports, created to give women a level playing field at physical activity, has become a third area for this destruction, men who, once again, have gone through puberty with all said physical effects, are competing against women, and due to that physical advantage are winning.

If society is serious about there now being a third classification of people beyond the two we already have, then the only way forward is to create a third space, with all that would entail, and be necessary; trans sports, trans prisons, trans shelters and so on. This attempt to force people to deny what they instinctually know, and have always known, cannot end well for anyone. And, seeing the breaking point society is currently being pushed in the direction of, this cannot come to soon.

Earlier in this essay, I talked specifically about women, and not girls. Girls are children, still developing both physically and, even more importantly, mentally. We deny children all sorts of rights and responsibilities due to this, from purchasing alcohol and tobacco, getting a tattoo, buying a gun. And we sometimes push these things past the age of majority, due to our feeling of the severity of consequences due to misuse of these things. But, right now there is a push to provide definitionally life altering, irreversible access to drugs and surgeries that can “affirm” a trans questioning child’s supposed ideals. But, we are comfortable pushing back hard on things that have severe but reversible consequences. This is wrong, and indefensible. A child can wait, and if these things must be hidden from the primary caregivers, then those hiding this are wrong on every count of this issue. I don’t think this comes from a place of honesty, but rather a place of competition. Competition with other viewpoints, viewpoints which have been declared declassee, for lack of a better word. This is far past foolish, but moving into the realm of dangerous. For not only can a child’s life be destroyed, witness the countless tales of detransitioning, but others can see the effects that adults are pushing on these children, and it will destroy the very real need for children to learn from people who have gone before, who can guide them in life. You are destroying trust in the world, and not replacing it with health skepticism, but fear.