QAA Podcast What is "Science in Transition" feat Liv Agar & Spencer Barrows (E331)
Coalition of Anti-Trans Actors
- The anti-trans backlash involves a coalition with diverse and conflicting ideals united against transgender acceptance.
- Many backlash members express their goals openly and brazenly, targeting marginalized groups unable to defend themselves.
The Root of Anti-Trans Backlash: A Hidden History of Medicine and Politics
The series "Science in Transition" reveals how the contemporary right-wing backlash against transgender acceptance is deeply tied to the "old guard" of trans medicine—clinicians from the early and mid-20th century who heavily gatekept access to hormones and treatments.
This old guard mixed scientific curiosity with conservative control, often enforcing psychotherapy and strict eligibility criteria to limit transgender people's autonomy.
The backlash coalition includes conservative politicians, militant feminists, and headline-driven journalists, who use this medical legacy to lend scientific legitimacy to anti-trans rhetoric and policies.
Crucially, the backlash is not just political but historic, stemming from decades of medical control, racial hierarchies in early trans care, and lingering fears about gender nonconformity that affected everything from children’s treatment to public policy.
Origins & Gatekeeping in Trans Medicine
- Early trans medicine emerged from endocrinology experiments, evolving from scientific curiosity without psychological stigma.
- Gatekeeping by clinicians entrenched strict requirements, restricting hormone access primarily to white, upper-middle-class individuals.
