Dr. Phil Misrepresents Transgender Identity

by Allison Hope · 2008-11-25 08:00:00 UTC
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Dr. PhilDr. Phil hosted a show last month that many view as trampling on transgender rights and even the science that supports gender diversity. The show allowed Dr. Glenn Stanton, an unqualified voice, to act as a counter personality to Dr. Dan Segal, in representing the conservative argument that gender means male or female. Stanton also gave credence to the notion that it is the parents’ responsibility to train the child to be of the appropriate gender and that it is fallacy on part of the parents when the child deviates from their assigned gender roles. His analogy was that when he was a child he wanted to be a horse so, why then, should parents support these inane and irrelevant childhood fantasies?

Dr. Stanton, in fact, is no doctor. He holds a Master’s degree from the University of West Florida and is known widely as one of the foremost defenders of evangelical family values. He is a fellow at James Dobson’s organization Focus on The Family, which boasts a Christian mission, “To cooperate with the Holy Spirit in sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with as many people as possible by nurturing and defending the God-ordained institution of the family and promoting biblical truths worldwide.” The show angered the parents of transgender children that were guests on the show as well as the larger LGBT community.

If you want to issue a formal complaint to Dr. Phil, GLAAD, the foremost LGBT watchdog organization recommends that you contact Stephanie Granader, the show’s Producer at Stephanie.granader@cbsparamount.com.

Allison Hope is a writer and multimedia artist living in New York City.

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