Nightline Wednesday: Story On How 3 Families of TG Youth Are Handling Transition

[Carolyn Marie]

This looks like it could be really good.

http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2011/08/abc-news-primetime-nightline-wednesday-night-to-feature-families-of-three-transgender-youths.html

Carolyn Marie

[JenniferB]

I wish the members overseas could see it live. Although it will undoubtedly there will be a video on Youtube or maybe Hulu.

Jenny

[Carolyn Marie]

I just wanted to mention that this show will air tonight, 10 Eastern and Pacific , 9 Central time.

Carolyn Marie

[JJ]

Thabks Carolyn, I'll try to catch it. Wish I could get the family to watch but they always have other things to do when anything about trans is on.

Sigh.

But at least they try to act accepting.

Hope the program is good and fair. Being Nightline it should be.

Johnny

[Guest Mia J]

If I can't watch it I will record it. The one thing that upsets me is once again they bring Kane into it. Are they going to have any successful transitions on in addition to Kane? I hope it will be positive.

Mia

[Guest Donna Jean]

.

Who's Kane?

Dee Jay

[Guest Mia J]

Charles Kane was a MTF who had SRS and then was not happy so had SRS again to go back because he was not happy. I have read several articles that use him as the example that SRS or even being trans is wrong.

Yes there are those of us who regret their decision. I know one here in Colorado. How many of them really followed the standards before SRS. The person I know bypassed the system and now is sorry they ever did it. But these people are in the minority and if that is all they present on this program without showing some of the success stories then it is going to be biased against these families.

Mia

[Guest Happy Alice]

Ugh I always see nightline, I couldn't see nightline last Friday because they were installing our new cable.

[Guest Donna Jean]

Charles Kane was a MTF who had SRS and then was not happy so had SRS again to go back because he was not happy. I have read several articles that use him as the example that SRS or even being trans is wrong.

Yes there are those of us who regret their decision. I know one here in Colorado. How many of them really followed the standards before SRS. The person I know bypassed the system and now is sorry they ever did it. But these people are in the minority and if that is all they present on this program without showing some of the success stories then it is going to be biased against these families.

Mia

Charles Kane...oh yeah....I remember now....

Totally bypassed the system (the SOC) and de-transitioned...

*sigh* what's that tell ya?

Dee Jay

[JJ]

I thought it was sensationalized with no mention of SOC or therapists or how many normal everyday people there are out there who have transitioned and lead happy lives. No mention by them or Kane that he had enough money to bypass the system and act on a whim or the fact that he is not representative. Also that his other actions and life choices haven't been too rational either.

Then one of the three kids they show is a sex worker to get money for FFS in Mexico and no mention that is not actually representative either.

I was unhappy with the program and the underlying sensationalism as well as the lack of real information. Glad the rest of the family missed it.

Johnny

[Carolyn Marie]

Aw, hell, That's disappointing. They publicized it like crazy, too. Looks like we can't get a break. I'll still watch it, but it will be tomorrow night, as I'm taping it. Thanks Johnny.

Carolyn Marie

[Guest meridian]

I recorded it and saw it this morning. The stories about transgender youth were excellent, but any good the program did was likely undone by the story of Charles Kane. It's clear to me that he was never transgender to begin with, just a spoiled rich guy with too much money and a bad doctor. But he'll provide ammunition for all of those who want to discredit our and our children's lives and decisions. I was also very disturbed by the fact that the woman in the third segment earned money for her surgery by selling herself, and was continuing to do it for further procedures, all with the knowledge of her apparently loving and supportive (though poor) family. She is clearly making bad choices. You would think that segment would force one to ask, what kind of a society are we that refuses to help pay for necessary medical procedures, even if they seem cosmetic? But that point was not at all addressed by the program. All told, I think it did the transgender community a disservice, and may have done more harm than good.

Love to all,

Meridian

[Guest kylie666]

Yeah i seen the program last night and as i watched the Charles Kane guy soon as he started talking about him self i could tell he was not a Transgender person, Just some guy who had a midlife crisis and needed friends, Sadly he's friends may or may-not have pushed him into being transgender.... I feel sad and mad at him all at the same time.

Telling people that No-one is Transgender and that it's a choice, Just because he messed up and did not take the right steps makes me SOOO MAD.. It's people like him that makes it hard for my Girlfriend to understand me

I know for most if not all TG people you just feel like something is wrong with you, You feel uncomfortable just doing normal things, Like buying clothes, I hated going shopping with my mom, Not because of me being a kid but the fact of the clothes where all crap I remember when i was like 5 wanting to buy this really cool dress but sadly i was to much of a Chicken to say anything to my mom.

Anyways this program was not all bad but a lot of it was and felt like they was trying to make Transgender a BAD thing and something to be Shamed and/or Fixed.

[Guest Madison_Always]

I also thought it was a misrepresentation of transsexuality in regards to the segment about Charles Kane, but I was really touched by the parts about the two little girls and OMG! Their families are the best. I wanted to jump through the screen and give them all big hugs. I also thought the last segment about the German girl was very real and very positive. On a side note i really felt that the host/interviewer came off as really rude to the Hispanic woman and to the girl in the last segment. I feel as if a person more sympathetic to trans issues would have been hosting, the right topics would have been better presented, and that questions better than "do you have a penis or vagina?" would have been asked.

[Guest Mia J]

Ok, I am going to be different here.

I thought that overall it was good.

They took four young people.

The first was a young boy who referred to himself as a boy but a princess boy and just like to dress up. There are lots of folks out there that like this and fit into the transgender category but not the transsexual one. At first it bothered me but in the context of the whole show it was good.

The second was young Jackie who by two years old knew she was a girl. It followed her conservative family who lived in a conservative area who were accepting and helpful and let her start living as Jackie full time. It showed the acceptance of the extended family and the community and that people could see that she was so much happier and this is how she needs to live. How many of us would have died for such an opportunity.

The third young lady was a in your face reality of what some of us are forced to go through to become who we are. A young lady who had no support or help from family or community from what looked like a poorer family. To do what she had to she ended up selling her body and using black market hormones. She went to a back ally surgeon who if you noticed during the procedure did not even use sterile procedures as all of their surgical masks were down. This young woman has had no support or guidance and is an example of what some people are doing to transition to who they are. It is good that they showed what can happen without support. Sad but true.

The last person was a total success story. A woman who's parents and family supported her at an early age. She transitioned early and started HRT at a normal age. While her SRS was early they made an exception for her because it was so obvious of who she is. A wonderful example of what can happen to someone who is supported at an early age by family.

The BAD:

Charles Kane. They could not pick anyone worse to put on. Here is a person who bypassed the system and they present him as someone speaking with authority. They should have had a few other adult transitions who represent us as the success stories. They also did not refer to the SOC at all or the findings in the last 40 years.

One thing I did was go to the website today and look at comments from people. I was AMAZED! Most of them were positive and about every other post was putting Night line down for having a creep like Charles Kane on the show as he did not represent what these children were. There are compassionate people out there.

Mia

[Guest Zane]

I watched it with my mother, and coincedentally my father who does not live with us watched it at the same time and all he could remember was the sexworker and illegial sex changes >.>

[Carolyn Marie]

I finally watched it last night. It was uneven, somewhat sensationalized but probably better than nothing. The Kane part truly irritated me. To give him all that time to spout his drivel without anyone to argue or point out why what he did was so wrong, was just poor journalism The guy was a bored, rich, male jerk wanting publicity, who thought he could have more fun as a woman. He found out that it isn't as glamorous as he had imagined, and now he is a bored, rich, male jerk who still just wants publicity. He isn't worth 5 seconds of my time, much less 10 minutes of it.

I did very much enjoy the segments on the 10 year old and on Kim Petral. The segment on the teen who went to Mexico was a valuable lesson on how not to do transition. That maniac Mexican surgeon probably should be prosecuted for malpractice. The teen lost my sympathy when the reporter asked her about getting a real job, and she just turned up her nose at it. Yeah, working for a living just doesn't pay as well. But at least you're not as likely to be murdered while working at Starbucks or Macy's.

Carolyn Marie

[Guest kylie666]

yeah i rather work at Walmart for 7.45$/hr and save money then do what she did