About Lianne

Lianne and her husband live in the suburbs outside of Atlanta

Barren Women and the Nashville Statement

nashvilleIntersex & Faith, Inc. recently completed a survey of more than 100 of the signatories of the Nashville Statement, asking for clarification of Article 6, especially the call for intersex people to, “embrace their biological sex insofar as it may be known.”

Historically, doctors have castrated us, surgically assigned us a sex, given us hormones, told us lies, kept secrets from us, and caused us to live in shame—all in the name of their binary vision of sex. So it was easy for some of us to conclude that Article 6 called on us to embrace the evil being done to us.

None of the signatories who responded agreed with that reading. None appeared to be in favor of childhood genital surgeries. In fact, Dr. Denny Burk, one of the architects of the Nashville Statement, opposes them.

Regarding the treatment of intersex cases, we received a variety of replies. Most either said they didn’t have enough experience with intersex, or that individual cases merited deeper consideration than a set of rules would allow.

The largest group, however, referred us to the writings of Dr. Denny Burk, who appears to reduce the diversity of biological sex to the presence or absence of a Y chromosome.

We included a short questionnaire with our survey. It’s available online here. The first question deals with Complete Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome:

“Your sixteen-year-old daughter Connie’s a godly young woman. She’s healthy but never got her period. A specialist says that she has Complete Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome. Although externally she’s a typical female, she has XY chromosomes, and testes in her abdomen rather than ovaries and uterus.”

Dr. Denny Burk, on his website (about halfway down the page in the comment section) addresses AIS:

“With AIS, there is an XY chromosomal make-up and the internal organs are still male. It is the external reproductive features that are malformed. This is a tragic, difficult condition, and those who experience it are in need of our compassion, love, and understanding. But that doesn’t preclude us from helping them see that they are essentially male in spite of ambiguities in external features.”

In his book, What is the Meaning of Sex?, on page 81, Dr. Burk appears to suggest that anyone born with a vagina but with XY chromosomes should be considered male.

“Try to determine as soon as possible the chromosomal makeup of the child. If there is a Y chromosome present, that would strongly militate against raising the child as a female, regardless of the apperance of the genitals or other secondary sex characteristics.”

This is certainly different than the commonly-accepted Biblical view or the historical view of the Church regarding how to determine a person’s sex. The Bible would consider a woman with CAIS to be female.

Barren women are usually infertile for biological reasons. Often, that is an intersex condition such as Complete Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome. It is only recently that the technology became available to determine karyotype (e.g. XX or XY).

A woman with Swyer Syndrome would have a functional vagina and uterus, but no gonads (or penis). Using IVF and a donor egg, some have carried a baby to term. Yet it appears that Dr. Burk–and some of the signatories of the Nashville Statement–would still consider her male because she has a Y chromosome. Again, the Bible would consider her female–a barren woman.

With the continuing debate over the ethics of transgender treatment, I’m astounded that any conservative Christians would take the position that someone born with a vagina and no penis is male, regardless of their genetics.

If you’re a Christian, and your child is intersex, please contact Intersex & Faith.

liannesimon at yahoo dot com

Intersex and the Nashville Statement

nashvilleThe recently published Nashville Statement represents the beliefs of a coalition of conservative evangelical leaders regarding same-sex marriage, gender identity, and even intersex.

Although their position regarding intersex may seem innocuous enough, I want to take a closer look at its implications.

I’m a Christian housewife. My husband and I are long-standing members of conservative Presbyterian churches. We’re familiar with quite a few of the signatories of the Nashville Statement and acknowledge them to be learned Christian men.

I’m intersex. My body’s not entirely female or male. I was raised for a time as a boy. In 1974, after prayerful consideration, and with the consent of my doctors and mother, I switched to living as a girl.

The Nashville Statement repeatedly stresses a male-female sex binary and the connection between what they call biological sex and one’s self-conception as male or female (What most of us would call gender identity.)

Although intersex is not directly mentioned, Article VI says:

WE AFFIRM that those born with a physical disorder of sex development are created in the image of God and have dignity and worth equal to all other image- bearers. They are acknowledged by our Lord Jesus in his words about ‘eunuchs who were born that way from their mother’s womb.’ With all others they are welcome as faithful followers of Jesus Christ and should embrace their biological sex insofar as it may be known.

WE DENY that ambiguities related to a person’s biological sex render one incapable of living a fruitful life in joyful obedience to Christ.”

Intersex is, to the signatories, a disorder. Note that Merriam-Webster defines a disorder as a physical or mental condition that is not normal or healthy. By specifying ‘physical disorder of sex development,’ the Statement effectively eliminates any mental differences resulting from intersex, including gender identity.

How should one interpret the last line of the affirmation? How does an intersex Christian embrace their biological sex insofar as it may be known?

I struggled for a long time to embrace my intersex condition as God’s particular Providence in my life rather than constantly longing to be entirely female or male. By His Grace, I’m reasonably content with my body now. Embrace my status as a Matthew 19:12 from-my-mother’s-womb eunuch? You bet. But is that what they meant?

With their emphasis on the male-female binary, it’s more reasonable to assume that they don’t consider intersex a sex category. They seem to think that an intersex person is still either male or female, but the DSD has obscured or confused their true sex. It is that so-called true sex (i.e. male or female) that the signatories want an intersex person to embrace.

Medical studies of intersex suggest that the most reliable way of determining the gender of an intersex child is to wait until they’re old enough to speak and ask them. But with the signatories’ refusal to recognize the biological roots of gender identity (i.e. self-conception), I must assume that the sex they wish that child to embrace would be based on some subset of their physical attributes—a reduction of the diversity of the child’s biology to fit a male-female binary.

Should we look to Chromosomes for the “true sex”?

I’ve often heard that boys are XY, and girls are XX. It’s as simple as that. My chromosomes are mixed, though—some of my cells have a Y chromosome; others don’t.

If you consider a woman with the complete form of Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome—who has XY chromosomes as well as internal testes, but typical external female genitalia—the Bible would consider her a barren woman rather than a man. So the Bible doesn’t care about XY or XX.

Should we look to gonads for the “true sex”?

Most boys have testes and most girls ovaries. I had a mix of tissue types. So I guess that doesn’t help much. And, again, the Bible considers our lady with CAIS and internal testes to be a woman.

Should we look to genitals for the “true sex”?

Quite a few people will say it’s all between the legs. And one could argue that the Bible agrees. But Deuteronomy 23:1 tells us that if a male cuts off his penis and testes, he’s no longer male in the eyes of the law, but a eunuch. Let me repeat that in another way—he just changed his legal sex category surgically. And in Matthew 19:12, Jesus says that some people who do that do so for the sake of the Kingdom. He also goes on to say that a lot of people just won’t understand the changing your legal sex thing.

Did I have a penis? Suffice it to say that I wasn’t capable of vaginal intercourse without surgery—as a man or a woman. I’ve had that surgery. So I’m pretty much female-typical down there now.

What then is the sex I should embrace? And who should decide?

So why did I switch from living as a boy to living as a girl? Did I one day decide to rebel against God’s clear plan? No. I prayed about it. A lot. Did I have a desperate need to be a girl? Um. No. At times being a girl sucks. Like when a man won’t listen to me because I’m a woman.

So why did my gender matter so much? Because I was close enough to death to smell the lilies at my funeral. My life revolved around my inability to function socially as a boy to the satisfaction of those around me.

I wanted a life. I wanted peace. I wanted to live for Jesus rather than die by my own foolishness. I wanted to honor God with the hand he’d dealt me.

I liked my feminine body. And—most of all—I wanted people to leave me alone.

My doctor said that with my face and demeanor I wouldn’t have any trouble being accepted as a girl. He was right. The bullying stopped.

For more than forty years I’ve been able to focus on things other than my gender, to be a productive member of society, or as Article VI says, to “live a fruitful life in joyful obedience to Christ.”

Who then should decide the “true sex”? Based on which sex markers?

The assumption of a true binary sex in the Nashville Statement ignores the complexity of human biology, the variety of the experiences of intersex people, and the damage done to intersex people by a medical establishment that enforces a binary sex on them.

I’m grateful that the Nashville Statement says that we who are intersex are “created in the image of God and have dignity and worth equal to all other image-bearers.” But I’m troubled that this affirmation appears to require us to give up our bodily integrity and embrace some doctor’s guess at what sex God meant us to be.

Understand this—your Nashville Statement drives intersex people away from the Gospel. Historically, doctors have castrated us, surgically assigned us a sex, given us hormones, told us lies, kept secrets from us, and caused us to live in shame. All in the name of your precious binary vision of sex.

It’s time you stood up for us rather than telling us to embrace what’s being done to us.

[Note: In my conversations with various people who signed the Nashville Statement, it became obvious that their intent was neither to condone medically unnecessary genital surgeries nor to drive anyone away from the Gospel. It is unfortunate that the wording led to such disparate interpretations.]

A Few Intersex Websites

During a recent interview with Dr. Michael Brown, I promised to post a few links to websites with information about intersex.

AIS-DSD — An intersex support group
interACT — Advocates for intersex youth
The Interface Project — Stories of people born with intersex traits
IntersexAndFaith — Intersex & Faith — sharing stories of intersex and faith
Intersex Society of North America — The original activist group
IntersexUK — An intersex group in the UK
OII — Organization Intersex International
Succeed Clinic — The OU DSD Clinic

The Reformation Project

“The Reformation Project is a Bible-based, Christian direct action organization that works to promote inclusion of LGBT people by reforming church teaching on sexual orientation and gender identity. We envision a global church that fully affirms LGBT people.” — from the Reformation Project website.

I’m a Christian housewife. My husband and I belong to what most would consider a conservative church. I’m also intersex; my body isn’t completely female or male.

For a time, I was raised as a boy. And it was during that period in my life that a young man shared the Gospel with me. He could have condemned me for not being masculine enough. Or for being attracted to boys. Or for wearing dresses. Instead, he encouraged me toward a childlike faith in Christ.

I spent about a decade answering inquiries on behalf of a support group for the parents of children born with Mixed Gonadal Dysgenesis—an intersex condition very similar to mine. I learned then that a large minority—if not a majority—of the parents of intersex children are conservative. And they are the audience I had in mind when I started sharing my story. It’s them I hope to persuade to preserve their children’s options. To avoid unnecessary medical treatment. And to support their children when the Church doesn’t.

I have chosen—for the sake of intersex children—to remain outside the debates over LGBT issues. I will say simply that my Lord has called me to love without hesitation. There are enough people willing to argue the doctrinal points.

A Safe Place To Learn

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Nobody told me I was intersex when I was a child. I’m not even sure how much my parents knew. Back then, physicians often kept such things a secret. After my health improved, my mother didn’t take me to the doctors, anyhow. As a nurse, she handled my medical care herself. And I’m not certain she would have told my father anything.

All I knew was that I was the smallest of my peer group and had a cute pixie face. It wasn’t until fifth grade that a classmate was shorter than me. Karen was her name. She and I used to play hopscotch during recess.  Until one day our principal said I had to play with the boys.

I have spatial deficits, okay? I can’t learn to dance or play basketball. As a child, I also had hypermobile joints. I didn’t have much in the way of muscle development. And until high school, I was smaller than all of the guys. I didn’t care if people thought I threw like a girl and ran like a girl—teasing I could handle. But playing with the boys got me hurt.

In fifth grade I had my first crush. Jim invited me over to listen to a new group—the Beatles. We sat on his bed while he sang their love songs to me. I dreamed of marrying him and having his babies. I begged my parents to let me grow my hair long, but they said I’d look like a girl.

1963_Eleven_CloseupHair(my hair, Mom's dress)_65

Well, yeah. You think so? My XO cell line gave me a small jaw, which made my face more feminine than it otherwise would have been.

Fifth grade would have been an appropriate time to speak with a psychologist about gender. And explore my options. But such wasn’t available. Even to a feminine intersex kid. So I shut down and became the geeky student who never spoke to anyone but still managed to break the grading curves.

My SAT score was 1552. They say my IQ is 161. I survived K through 12. Some kids don’t. Especially kids who are different. Outsiders get bullied. Outsiders may not get as much help from their teachers. On occasion, their grades are lower simply because they’re different.

My college threatened to expel me for being too feminine. I survived that as well. By the grace of a loving God, because I didn’t have much human help.

I’m a Christian. Whatever I’m supposed to believe about LGBT kids, I know this—bullying isn’t right. That’s why I’m on the board of Pride School Atlanta. Because kids who are different need our love. And a  safe place where they can flourish.

This year my royalty payments for A Proper Young Lady will go toward funding Pride School Atlanta. Yeah, that’s not much. But, you know, every little bit makes a difference.

So, buy a book. Or contribute directly to Pride School Atlanta here.

 

A Proper Young Lady

9780985148225In the summer of 2012, the AIS-DSD support group met in Oklahoma City. Most who attended were women with Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome or—like me—had some other Difference of Sex Development. #intersex is the word most of us happily accept.

That year, the organization invited medical personnel involved in the treatment or study of intersex—the friendly ones, at least. Among those was Eric Vilain, MD, PhD, the Co-Director of the UCLA Institite for Society and Genetics.

In response to a question, Dr. Vilain said that it might be possible to harvest immature spermatazoa from the gonads of a woman with Partial Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome and use those to fertilize human eggs. He suggested that only ethical considerations were keeping a clinic from doing so. Or, perhaps, a clinic had already done so quietly.

My publisher and I had recently finished editing my first novel, Confessions of a Teenage Hermaphrodite, so I was eager to start writing my next book.

Three long years passed before A Proper Young Lady became a reality.

A woman with the complete form of Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome might never discover that she has testes in her abdomen rather than ovaries and uterus.

Danièle knows, and she grieves that she can never have her own children. She has a partial form of AIS that left her with ambiguous genitals, a steady stream of doctors and psychologists, and parents determined to see her happy as a girl.

After Danièle’s best friend and childhood crush agrees to act as a surrogate for her, Danièle learns that the clinic can extract sperm from her own gonadal biopsies, so she becomes the biological father of Melanie’s baby herself.

Ethan adores the graceful young woman named Danièle, while Melanie imagines a life with the father of her children. Danièle? She’s happy with her intersex body—somewhere between princess and little boy. But in a black and white world, she must choose—once and for all—who she will be. And whom she will love.

#Intersex—Disclosure and Blowback

Photo courtesy James Westenbroek

Photo courtesy James Westenbroek

Male, Female, and Intersex in the Image of God
Thursday evening, Megan DeFranza and I spoke at Calvin College as a part of their Sexuality Series. The presentation was LiveStreamed and is available here(presentation) and here(Q&A).

Several people commented on how brave I was to share my story, but I don’t wish to mislead anyone—I’m not. Bravery involves a readiness to face danger and pain.

I doubt I’ll ever be a match for the emotional turmoil involved in talking about personal experience with intersex. Even though I never had to suffer unwanted medical interventions. If I were brave, I’d stand in front of you with my shields lowered as I disclosed my heart.

At some level, though, I can’t bear to face it all, so instead, I dissociate. I box up all the unpleasantness and let it bleed out after everyone’s gone (excepting perhaps my husband).  That’s what I hide when I’m on stage or in front of a classroom.

Therapy. Yes. If I had the time. And the money. And could place enough trust in the medical profession.

Fortunately, I have a Redeemer who loves me and doesn’t mind my curling up on his lap. I don’t have to be a mature adult for Jesus, you know. I simply have to admit my need of him.

And He’s why I seek transparency. Why I sign  up for a speaking engagement when I know the cost may be brutal. Why I risk offending both my intersex and my Christian friends. (‘Cause I know I’ll get some of the details wrong. Forget where that quote in Isaiah is.)

Secrecy—the first pillar of intersex treatment. Unfortunately, many in the Church remain unaware of the existence of those who don’t fit into their neat male-female binary.

Surgery—the second pillar. Without consent. Without full disclosure. To erase intersex.

Shame—the third pillar. Because there’s something so horrible about our bodies that we can’t even talk about them.

What chance has an intersex child against the  organized might of the medical profession and the complicity of society in general?

Christians need to help. And that doesn’t mean telling people who are different they’re going to hell. It means caring enough to put an end to the mistreatment of those born outside the binary. It means welcoming us in the open. And without shame.

Thank you, Julia Smith, Program Coordinator at Student Life and Director of the Sexuality Series at Calvin College for inviting Megan and me to speak and for watching over us during our stay.

Thank you, Elisha Marr, Assistant Professor of Sociology—and your students—for your time and polite questions.

Thank you, SAGA (Sexuality and Gender Awareness) for welcoming us to the campus. And for the cool T-shirts!

And, thank  you Calvin College, for your hospitality.

 

 

 

 

Eastern Iowa Review — Changeling

Eastern Iowa Review

“Afterward, pain shadows my every move. Whenever I stop, the dull ache in my tailbone grows until it consumes each waking thought and pursues me into my dreams.” —Changeling

The inaugural issue of the Eastern Iowa Review is scheduled for an early May release. I’m delighted that a personal essay I wrote on intersex, will be included.

The literary journal’s founding editor, Chila Woychik, was gracious enough to drop by and chat about her new venture.

Lianne: Welcome! The EIR submission guidelines say, “Show us the good and glorious respites between the hurt; show us those good spaces.” I love that sentiment. Tell us a little more about your vision for the magazine. What drives you?

Chila: Coming from a non-faith childhood to an evangelical young adult and middle life experience, then to a more general faith perspective has led me to believe that there is true beauty and balance in this world, and it’s not that hard to find, especially if we approach life with a nonsectarian mindset. Further, having a child of my own has helped me grasp the importance of appropriateness in reading materials, viewing materials, etc., on impressionable minds, and how often “adult” materials are pretty worthless in the overall scheme even to adults. My goal is to try to bring that kind of truth and beauty to the world.

Lianne: If you would, give our readers a bit of a preview—what are some of the special things in this issue?

Chila: Besides your fantastically open and honest essay, we have creative writing ideas from a Pushcart Award winner, stories and nonfiction from MFA’s, MDs, those with little published writing and those with a CV as long as your arm. Of course, I’m grateful for each and every contribution but am extra pleased with our nonfiction and fiction special contributors: one is an English Language Fellow with the US State Department in Russia, and the other has been published numerous times simply because her writing is top notch literary.

Lianne: When I started sending out queries for Confessions of a Teenage Hermaphrodite, my assumption was that I should seek an agent who represented Christians. But even ‘edgy’ Christian Fiction didn’t include novels with an intersex main character.

It was about that time, I think, that I ran across an article you’d written on the issues with Christian Fiction. (Indeed, my novel has a few of the problems so prevalent in the genre.) Has the situation improved much over the past two or three years?

Picture0338Chila: I just finished judging a group of middle grade / YA samples for a West Coast Christian writing contest, and I was amazed to find about half the entries were quite decent. Yes, there were the usual too-overt religious elements, but overall the good pieces were really quite good. Of course, these were only samples, the first ten pages or so, so who knows how those stories resolved and how they moved toward that resolution. I seldom read Christian fiction anymore; I don’t have time to waste on what has too often been bad writing teamed with an attempt at redemption through in-your-face preachiness. I’m still waiting for the day when serious writers who also believe in God will seek to address universal truths in a way that everyone, of faith or not, will sit up and take notice.

Lianne: A few of the agents that I met face to face—some of whom praised my writing—lost all interest once I explained that I was intersex. The Lord has called me to be more transparent. So I don’t hide what I am any longer. But that makes me more vulnerable.

On a previous occasion, you offered me a contract on a short story. While writing Changeling, I kept reminding myself of that. Yet I worried you might not want to risk publishing what I wrote. My essay seemed well outside what most literary magazines would print. Even given your statements regarding Christian Fiction. Would you share a bit more about your thoughts on determining limits for content?

Chila: I think your story is an important and poignant one. I also think many literary magazines would gladly publish it given you maintain a general, not-overly-religious, stance. For the Eastern Iowa Review, I sought strong nonfiction that was true and still beautiful with redeeming value for the general reader, the homeschooling mom and her brood to the college professor seeking something a little less traditional, a break from the norm. I guess I don’t consider “intersex” a tough topic as opposed to, say, a graphic story with sex scenes or brash profanity or crude jokes. To me, the truth of an intersex birth is a far cry from themes some would consider “adult.” Also to me, I would have gladly (though carefully) explained to my young son about genetic differences; their reality; it’s where we live. We learn about, learn from, and love people, period. There is no distinction, or should be no distinction. It is not unbiblical to be born intersex, so why should people hide it or discriminate against it?

Lianne: You’ve recently become a literary agent. Port Yonder Press publishes books. Eastern Iowa Review prints poetry, fiction, and non-fiction. You’re an editor and a prolific writer. How do you find the time to remain healthy and happy, let alone sane?

Chila: A few things changed earlier this year, primarily that Port Yonder Press will no longer publish material, though a few of our books will remain on our sales lists for the next year or two. Also, as of now, EIR is only an annual thing, if that. Re: editing – most of my work as an editor was for Port Yonder Press, so that will no longer apply. I had also managed the Zero Bone Poetry Prize, but this is our last year for that as well. I’ve trimmed my life out of a compelling desire to write, so for now I’m focusing on my personal writing journey, this new literary agenting gig, and possibly the journal. This is very doable and will allow me to follow my dreams at last. I also have a small farm full of animals, an awesome Jeep, and a few hobbies that I adore, such as hiking, boot & book shopping, and keeping up with friends and relatives: these things bring perspective and keep me grounded.

Lianne: I’m really excited about the release of Eastern Iowa Review. Where can people purchase a copy? How much of the content will be available online? When will you be open to submissions again?

Chila: Our goal is to have a link here by May 1st. If you purchase off our site, you’ll save over an Amazon purchase, so we’re hoping many folks will avail themselves of that opportunity; it will also net more proceeds for us and for the cause of good literature. Online content will be very limited, perhaps one-sixth of the total number of stories. “Changeling” will be one of the stories available online as will a couple more essays and a piece of fiction or two. We want people to read some of the best we’ve included so they’ll be encouraged to want the rest. All the stories are good, of course, but I feel we’ll have a good cross-section of styles and topics free online.

Lianne: Thanks for stopping by. May our dear Lord richly bless you. And thank you, dear lady, for your friendship.

Chila: The honor is all mine, Lianne, and your friendship has become special to me. Best to you as well!

[edited September 26th, 2015] Changeling is here.

Why Christians Should Oppose Bathroom Bills

Florida, Kentucky, and Texas, are considering–or have passed–bills that would limit who can use sex-specific restrooms. The stated intent is to prevent men from dressing as women and entering a restroom to expose themselves, rape someone, or commit some other crime against a woman or child. The real intent appears to be to prevent transgender people from using a bathroom at all. As a perhaps unintended consequence, the bills would also affect those of us born with an intersex condition and people who aren’t quite as masculine or feminine as most everyone else.

   image from wipeouttransphobia.com

One of the Texas bills specifies that sex is determined by chromosomes, thus rejecting transgender people who have changed their legal sex. Even in another state.

There are several good reasons for Christians to reject such folly.

1) A woman with the complete form of Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome is born with XY chromosomes, female-typical genitals, and testes in her abdomen rather than ovaries and uterus. If her testes are left in place, she’ll have a normal feminine puberty, yet without menstruation. She might well live her entire life without knowing she’s intersex. The Bible would consider her a barren woman. The Texas bill would consider her male. Such is an egregious persecution of an innocent person.

2) The proponents of these bills state that the intent is to protect children from predators. Yet we already have laws that would apply to a man dressing as a woman, entering a women’s restroom, and committing a crime against someone in the restroom. Exposing oneself or raping someone is already against the law.

3) The bills would force transgender people to use a bathroom that goes against their gender, thus making bathroom occupants uncomfortable and increasing the likelihood of violence against the transgender person. Below is a photo of Buck Angel, an XX female-to-male transsexual. Legally, he’d have to use the womens’ restroom.

4)  People born with intersex conditions in which their chromosomal sex doesn’t agree with their genital sex would have to use a bathroom inappropriate to their gender. From the wording, it’s likely that I would be unable to legally use either a mens’ restroom or a womens’ restroom. My karyotype is 46,XY,22qs+/45,X,22qs+, which is certainly not standard male or female.

5) One of the Texas bills actually offers a bounty for anyone finding a transgender person in a bathroom different from one that would ‘match’ their biological birth sex. This would encourage people to harass anyone whose presentation doesn’t fit a binary model of sex. A teen not quite as masculine as his peers might well find a bathroom an unpleasant place to visit. As if they weren’t already bullied enough.

6) Most states have laws that allow a legal change in sex. The Texas bill would ignore the legal sex status of a person, regardless of the place of their birth. But only when they enter a restroom. So, they’d be legally one sex outside the restroom and the other when inside. Does that really make sense to anyone?

7) The law isn’t enforceable without draconian intrusions on privacy. I’m female. I look like a woman. Is someone who doesn’t know that I’m intersex going to stop me at the bathroom door and ask for a karyotype? I think not. Only those whose appearance doesn’t fit someone’s concept of masculine or feminine is going to be harassed. So, enforcement will be selective, discriminating against those whose appearance isn’t masculine or feminine enough.

8) Come on. Really. Most bathrooms have stalls. And most female-to-male trans people aren’t going to be using the urinals. Okay? You’re not gonna see their private parts.

9) Is this really the Gospel? Would the love of Christ harass people whose only goal is to pee in peace? Even if you’re positive that transgender people are breaking God’s law (which they’re not–see Matthew 19:12), the bills would discriminate against people who aren’t transgender.

It’s clear to me that this isn’t about preventing rapes. It’s about a bigoted rejection of people who are already subject to a high suicide rate, a high murder rate, and bullying. Sorry, but what happened to compassion? As Christians, we should share the Gospel and repent of our hate.

‘If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.’ 1 John 4:20 (ESV)

See Hating Transgender Kids