Transgender Foster Youth: A Forced Identity

Alex Duncan
Dr. Currans
WGST 202
T/Th 12:30-1:45
Blog Topic: Violence Against Transgender People

Olson, Christine L. “Transgender Foster Youth: A Forced Identity.” Texas Journal of Women and the Law 19.1 (2009): 25-57. GenderWatch; ProQuest Criminal Justice. Web. 18 Sep. 2014

The article that I read was “Transgender Foster Youth: A Forced Identity,”  by Christine L. Olson.  In this article, Olson discusses how gender nonconforming children, particularly in the foster care system, are mistreated and misunderstood.  A few parts of the article seemed to use a few terms somewhat incorrectly, such as saying “transgendered boys” when the text seemed to be discussing transgender girls, or referring to groups of people as “transgenders,” but overall the article brought up some good points that were supported well.  Primarily the issues regarding how young people are forced into specific gender roles and how this is damaging to the way they see themselves, especially if they are not cisgender.

            As evidence by the title, a large portion of this article focuses specifically on homes that repress a child’s gender expression.  Nonconforming identities make a lot of people uncomfortable, and there are an unfortunate number of homes where children would be forced to adopt the stereotypical expression of their assigned gender.  Olson discusses how this is abusive behavior.  A cisgender child would not be likely to be forced to wear clothes that stray from their gender identity, and if they were, there would be people calling out the guardians for putting their child in a situation that is uncomfortable at best and traumatizing at the worst.  By forcing a child to take on a façade and play a role, not only in public but also in the home, they are being stifled and manipulated.  It can cause future issues and lead to potential violence or discrimination.

            Olson talks a lot about different laws and how they evolve over the years.  One set of laws being discussed categorized Gender Identity Disorder as a disability and detailed that disabled children must have proper accommodations.  While this certainly isn’t the most progressive light to view transgender children in, it is a small step towards at least allowing them to grow.  However, many children unfortunately did not fall under the category of “disabled” as the details of the law were very exclusive. 

Transgender children were thought to be more difficult to control in the foster homes, so they were often made to conform to gender norms in an attempt to get them to fit in with everyone else.  This, however, can cause a lot of psychological damage and self-esteem issues for people.

            Aside from the abusive and medical aspects of this topic, a large part of discussion regarding transgender youth is about society and the social reaction to gender nonconforming individuals.  Transgender children are much more prone to violence and discrimination.  Sometimes adopting a gender expression that is more along the lines of what one may expect is a matter of safety.  However, that should only be true when it comes to presenting in environments that may not be safe.  The home should be a safe place. 

            Olson brings up a lot of issues surrounding the treatment of transgender youth in foster care.  The discrimination centered around gender expression is a form of violence, forms of dysphoria are considered a disability, and society is the main problem when it comes to allowing children to present in the way that feels most comfortable to them.  This article certainly has a lot of similar points to the first article, Violence against Transgender People: A Review of United States Data by Rebecca Stotzer, as it is an undeniable fact that transgender people face very high risks of violence and discrimination.  Children are often forced to change themselves rather than the world around them.  Olson’s article, however, focused on suggestions that she felt might help transgender youth in the foster care system rather than just listing facts about it.  The first article was a lot more statistics-based and was more about spreading awareness.  After reading Olson’s article, I have a lot more to consider.  I had never really stopped to consider all of the issues that transgender children in foster care had to deal with specifically, I had only considered the general troubles that trans* youth were faced with.  This article certainly brings up a variety of viewpoints and potential conflicts/solutions.  Looking into specified situations of an issue is a good way to become more educated on the issue in general, as it always brings up a lot of issues that are not always as noticeable when viewing the general idea.