Gender: A Wider Lens
Gender: A Wider Lens
94 — WPATH’s Bizarre 8th Standards of Care
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94 — WPATH’s Bizarre 8th Standards of Care

WPATH (World Professional Association for Transgender Health) has recently released its Standards of Care, Version 8 (SOC8) to a lot of criticism and controversy. Sasha and Stella provide a preliminary examination of WPATH and their SOC8, explaining why they believe glaring issues within these guidelines have discredited the organization.

Links:

Extended Notes

  • WPATH is a fringe organization.

  • Many doctors are influenced by WPATH without knowing it.

  • The Standards of Care are misguided and fully represent the citations they are based on.

  • Stella shares the history of WPATH and its documents.

  • In 1979, Harry Benjamin released his first Standards of Care.

  • In 2006, the Henry Benjamin Foundation changed its name to WPATH.

  • In SOC 7, a chapter on ethics was removed from the document yet the chapter on eunuchs remained.

  • SOC8 has the feel of a shopping list of surgical interventions.

  • Almost all of the minimum age requirements were missing from SOC8.

  • The language is “lawyer language” because it is vague enough for no one to be held responsible.

  • The document is more about political will than clinical care.

  • Sasha shares the nonsensical parts of SOC8, referencing the non-binary chapter.

  • Many items are categorized under gender but are truly body modifications.

  • Many website references cited in the document include unsavory information.

  • Detransitioners are badly depicted in SOC8 and the definition of a detransitioner is abhorrent.

UPDATE:

Discussion about this episode