Medico-Legal Responses to Transgender Children: Towards a Model of Gender Affirmation?
25 March - 9 April 2019
Biography
Professor Olson-Kennedy, MD, is an Adolescent Medicine physician and researcher specializing in the care of gender non-conforming children and transgender youth. Board certified in Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Professor Olson-Kennedy has been an Associate (previously Assistant) Professor at Children's Hospital Los Angeles for more than a decade. Professor Olson-Kennedy has been providing medical intervention for transgender youth and young adults including puberty suppression and cross sex hormones for much of this time, and is internationally recognised expert in this area. She is regularly invited to speak on issues relating to transgender youth, both in the United States and far afield, and she is currently a member of World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH). Professor Olson-Kennedy is the Medical Director of The Center for Transyouth Health and Development at Children’s Hospital in Los Angeles, the largest transgender youth clinic in the United States. Since 2015, she has been the Principal Investigator on a multi-million dollar, multi-centre research project (funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) which charts the long-term impact of affirmative interventions of transgender children. Previously, Professor Olson-Kennedy also researched on issues relating to HIV medication adherence. Professor Olson-Kennedy regularly publishes in leading peer-reviewed journals, such as the Journal of Adolescent Health. She currently serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Transgender Health. Professor Olson-Kennedy has been widely recognised for her commitment to gender equality, and has been honoured by organisations, such as Equality California and the Champion Fund. She advises, or has previously advised, numerous civil society groups, including Planned Parenthood and Transyouth Family Allies.
Professor Olson-Kennedy frequently appears on national television. She speaks all over the United States to educate providers, parents, and other communities about the needs of transgender youth. She received her medical degree from the Chicago Medical School, University of Chicago.
Project Summary
In 2004, Parliament enacted the Gender Recognition Act (GRA 2004). For the first time in the United Kingdom, transgender (trans) individuals were entitled to obtain formal acknowledgement of their preferred gender. Under s. 1(1) of the GRA 2004, only ‘persons of either gender who [are] aged at least 18’ can apply for a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC). This means that, despite the growing population of youth – who are undertaking social and medical transitions prior to majority – UK law continues to recognise only adult trans identities. This is also the case in a majority of jurisdictions in the United States, where legal gender recognition remains a devolved matter and where the rights of transgender persons are subject to a multiplicity of (often highly restrictive) state laws.
During her Benjamin Meaker (BM) Professorship, Professor Olson-Kennedy – drawing upon her extensive clinical research – will explore the medico-legal dimensions of withholding legal gender recognition from children in the United Kingdom and the United States. In partnership with Dr Peter Dunne (School of Law), and approaching the topic through a highly inter-disciplinary lens, Professor Olson-Kennedy will share insights on how policies of disaffirmation impact mental and physical health. In particular, Professor Olson-Kennedy and Dr Dunne will ask two core questions: (a) Would inclusion of individuals under the age of 18 years within gender recognition laws enhance the mental and physical health of transgender children? (b) What are the medico-legal risks of including individuals under the age of 18 years within gender recognition laws?
Combining their respective expertise, Professor Olson-Kennedy and Dr Dunne will consider whether UK and American law is consistent with the ‘best interests’ of transgender children, and they will develop a ‘model law’ for acknowledging transgender youth. The primary purpose of the research project is to draw upon Professor Olson-Kennedy’s field-leading medical research, and her expertise in gender-confirming interventions for young people, to enhance academic and policy understanding (particularly in the United Kingdom) on the possible consequences of extending legal gender recognition laws to include transgender people under the age of 18 years.
During her stay Professor Olson-Kennedy will be hosted by Dr Peter Robert Dunne (School of Law)
www.bristol.ac.uk/ias/fellowships/meakers/johanna-olson-kennedy/
There will be a public lecture delivered by Olson-Kennedy on April 4th, entitled ‘Transgender Youth - An overview of medical and mental health needs of gender non-conforming children and transgender adolescents'
Lecture Abstract:
"Transgender youth are a vulnerable population with unique needs that span the professional arenas of medicine, social work, mental health and law. They are at increased risk for negative health outcomes including depression, anxiety, isolation, drug use, and sexually transmitted infections, including HIV.
Gender dysphoria is best understood as the ongoing distress experienced by transgender individuals about the incongruence between ones assigned sex and one’s internal gender identity. This ongoing distress frequently results in impairment of function. While not all transgender individuals experience gender dysphoria, many require physical changes to their bodies in order to bring them into closer alignment with their internal gender identity.
Unfortunately, access to competent mental health and medical care for those youth desiring gender transition is still extremely rare, and often inadequate. Timely and appropriate treatment for transgender youth undergoing phenotypic gender transition is critical for these young people to move forward and thrive in often hostile environments.
This lecture covers the basic elements of providing comprehensive care for trans youth, including gender development, recognizing signs and symptoms of gender dysphoria, the impact of cis-gender normative environments on trans youth, mental health challenges commonly faced by trans youth, and the use of medications to facilitate gender transitions."
www.bris.ac.uk/law/events/2019/transgender-youth.html
What will this mean for children and their treatment in the UK?
Informative thread about Olson-Kennedy by 4thWaveNow:
twitter.com/4th_WaveNow/status/1109135524948779008